Star Ghost Origins: Johnny and Fara
by John Storm
Summary: An origins story to my Legend of Star Ghost: Annihilation. In this story, Johnny Storm and Fara Phoenix for the first time because of a major mistake. A simple return home to Papetoon for the Star Fox team turns into a blood bath. This story involves OC's by Troygroomes, with permission. Please R
1. Chapter 1

**This story is a continuation for my Legend of Star Ghost series. The prologue takes place immediately following the epilogue of Annihilation. But the main story is a prequel to Annihilation. I'd recommend reading Annihilation before reading this story to clear up any confusion.**

Prologue

Marcus McCloud wakes up to the smell of bacon, his favorite smell in the world, except for his mother's hair. He rises out of bed as if the smell has him hypnotized. Marcus walks into the kitchen expecting to see his mother standing over the stove cooking. Instead, he finds Jonathan cooking.

Seeing a 6'4" Black Wolf in the house is surprising enough for Marcus. The house is barely big enough for Jonathan to walk through. Jonathan has to bend down just to keep his head from hitting the ceiling when he walks through. Every time Jonathan's hit his head on the ceiling, Marcus has bust up laughing. Sometimes it's hard for Marcus to believe that he is related to Jonathan (even if it is through marriage and not blood). But seeing Jonathan standing over his mother's stove stuns him.

Krystal and Fox are seating at the dinner table talking to Fara. April is cradled in Fara's arms. Fara is feeding April her bottle. They are talking about something boring. Marcus pays them almost no attention.

Daniel is seated on the couch studying for his final exams. His tests are only a week away. If he passes then he will an officer in the elite Husky Squadron. Daniel is also helping Jennifer study for her finals. She is finishing her first year at the Cornerian Flight Academy. This being Daniel's final year at the Academy, he is a natural choice to help her study. If only Jennifer would listen to him. She's got too much of Fara in her.

Alisha and Hunter are playing together. They are making a lot of noise. How the others can concentrate with all that racket is a mystery.

"Mom, you're not cooking."

"No, Jonathan said that he would. I wasn't going to argue with him. Jonathan is the best cook I've ever known. Trust me, you haven't lived until you've had Jonathan's bacon."

"But mom I love your cooking."

"Then you'll love Jonathan's cooking. He's the one who taught me how to cook."

Marcus falls in love with Jonathan's bacon in one bite.

"So Uncle John, when are you going to tell us more stories of your days as Star Ghost?"

"I'm really not sure that's a good idea. Daniel and Jennifer have to study and I don't want to interrupt them with another trip to the memory pool."

"Well we can always just tell them a story." Fara jumps in.

"Yeah, I guess we can do that. What story do you kids wanna hear?"

"I've always wanted to know how you and mom met." Alisha suggests.

"I thought that we told you how we met." Fara says a little confused.

"No, you told me and Jennifer ten years ago." Daniel butts in.

"Oh yeah, I remember that." Fara says and turns to Fox and Krystal. "When you have five kids to keep track things get a little difficult."

"I'll probably go crazy if we have five kids." Fox says then realizes what he's just said might have offended Krystal. "Honey, I am so sorry."

"It's ok Fox, words exited your mouth without going through your mind first. I'm used to it. Besides, I understand what you're talking about Fox. Marcus is a little troublemaker. . ."

"Like Fox was he was Marcus' age." Fara interrupts.

"I guess that's true Fara." Krystal replies then turns to Fox. "With our second child on the way, things may get a little hectic."

"Alright" Fara says awkwardly at Johnny. The conversation got way off from where they wanted it to go.

Jonathan turns to the children. "So ya'll want to hear the story on how Fara and I met?"

"Yes"

"Alright, Fara and I met twenty – one years ago. It was during the middle of combat and it was not love at first sight."


	2. Chapter 2 Oops

**This story takes place during the Star Fox 1992 Comic. Star Fox has just finished defeating Andross the first time.**

Chapter 1: The Wild Cats Squadron

_Twenty – one years ago (1 year before the Lylat Wars)_

Ten Striker Starfighters and a Dreadnought – class ship are forming along the dark side of Jeremiah, of the Genesis System. A rebel command ship is visible in the distance. Lieutenant Colonel Bobcat Harrison flies in front of the others to address them.

"Men, as you are aware of, the rebels have attacked a mining facility on Moldova. They killed everyone there. 350 innocent lives lost. As the Wild Cats Squadron, we cannot allow this evil to go unanswered."

The Wild Cats shout back in agreement.

"Glad to hear ya'll are so excited to kill these bastards. Command has tracked these scum bags to a small battleship on Jeremiah's moon. We are to eliminate them from existence."

LC Bobcat looks at his men. All nine of them are ready: Lieutenant Jonathan (Johnny) Storm, Lieutenant Gilbert Cross, Sergeant Shane Wilson, Master Sergeant Brian Grieves, Sergeant First Class Michael Lazlo, Sergeant Panther Caruso, Sergeant Timothy Jones, Corporal Craig Nelson, Private First Class Dean Marks, and Private Troy Groomes.

"Here's the plan guys. Lazlo, Groomes, Caruso, Nelson, and Marks, I want you guys to fly in straight at them and attack them with everything you got. Get their attention. Once you get their attention pull back. It needs to look like you are retreating. Make sure that they are following you. If not, turn around and attack again. Lead them to this position. Storm, Cross, Wilson, Grieves, and myself will circle around and attack them from behind. The rest of you will turn around and attack the battleship with Timothy. Make sure that you kill them all. We don't want any of these rebel scum getting away. Any questions?"

There are none.

"Good, let's give them hell."

Ten minutes later Lazlo, Groomes, Caruso, Nelson, and Marks are poised to attack the rebels. Hiding in the shadow of the moon, they can see the rebel mother ship.

"Looks like one of those Star Destroyers from Star Wars." Groomes says.

"Groomes, don't break radio silence. They have over a hundred ships. We need surprise for this to work." Lazlo radios backs.

"Sorry sir, just curious how the rebels got such advanced technology."

The squad doesn't need any more information. Attacking and defeating a battleship with guerilla warfare tactics is basic knowledge for SpecOps and BlackOps. They all know that for the plan to succeed, they first have to disable the battleship's engines, to keep it from moving and getting away. Once disabled, the rebels will come out to defend their ship. Due to a battleship's heavy armament, a distraction usually works best. Then a pilot takes out the shield generator/power supply, allowing another pilot to launch a Nova Bomb into the battleship's hangar, destroying it from the inside.

Lazlo, Groomes, and Panther fly up behind the battleship. Nelson and Marks cover them. As usual, the battleship's shields are turned off. To save power, the rebels usually turn on the shield generator only when they are in combat. It's a weakness that is about to exploited. The battleship has three engines to take out. Lazlo, Groomes, and Panther each lock onto an engine and fire a Nova Bomb.

"Sir, rebel ship is disabled. Commencing attack now."

Nelson and Marks fly past the others, making sure that the rebels see them. The battleship tries to shoot them down but Nelson and Marks evade. They keep the guns focused on them.

Lazlo, Troy, and Panther separate. Groomes flies past the left side, Panther flies past the right side, and Lazlo flies directly over it. All three fire at the ship's guns, damaging them.

As if on cue, the rebel fighters fly out of the hangar and attack the Wild Cats.

"Sir, we definitely got their attention. They are pissed off at us."

Lazlo, Groomes, Panther, Nelson, and Marks fly away as fast as possible. They make it look like they're retreating. The rebels follow them like idiots. They lead the rebels right to the dark side of the moon. As soon they pass the moon and are out of the rebels' sight, Lazlo, Groomes, Panther, Nelson, and Marks break off.

"Where'd they go? They went this way."

"They have to be around here somewhere."

Bobcat, Storm, Cross, Wilson, and Grieves fly right behind the rebels. They all lock onto the rebels and each fires a Nova Bomb. The bombs hit and take out over half of the rebels. The blast is so powerful that the Wild Cats can feel the shock wave in their ships.

"We got these guys. You go to Timothy. He's waiting for you on the dark side of the planet." Colonel Bobcat orders.

"Yes sir"

Lazlo, Groomes, Panther, Nelson, and Marks leave Bobcat, Storm, Cross, Wilson, and Grieves to fight the rebels. The rebels are panicking like crazy. Seeing over half of their friends die in an instant was horrifying.

"Hey Johnny, what do you say we have some fun with morons." Colonel Bobcat smiles.

"I got your back sir."

Bobcat flies into combat first. The rebels are too stunned to see him. Bobcat barrel rolls and fires at the same time, creating a laser vortex that destroys anything in its path. Bobcat punches a hole in the rebel fighters. Bobcat gets the rebels' attention. They concentrate all their fire on fire. Bobcat flies away from the rebels, who pursue after him.

"I got their attention. You guys got a free for all on these retards."

Storm, Cross, Wilson, and Grieves fly up behind the rebels following Bobcat. They lock onto the rebel ships and fire. The remaining rebels split, making them easy targets for the Wild Cats to pick off.

"It's like a retarded turkey shoot down here." Storm laughs.

Lazlo, Groomes, Panther, Nelson, and Marks find Timothy waiting for them.

"Tim, the mother ship still there?" Nelson asks.

"Of course it is dumbass. You guys disabled its engines. The dang thing's not going anywhere. There's still a few rebel fighters guarding the ship. I'll fly in first. The rest of ya'll follow me."

Lazlo, Groomes, Panther, Nelson, and Marks follow Timothy as he flies the Dreadnaught straight towards the rebel battleship. Timothy flies right up behind it and fires the front cannons. The lasers hit battleship but do little damage.

The rebel fighters engage Timothy, exposing themselves to the Wild Cats Squadron. Nelson and Marks open fire and the rebels scatter. The rebels hardly put a fight.

"These guys are terrible."

Lazlo, Groomes, and Panther fly underneath the battleship. They find the shield generator on the underside of the battleship. Panther halts and waits for Lazlo and Groomes get into position. As soon as Lazlo and Groomes are in position, Panther blasts the shield generator, disabling the ship's shields. Lazlo and Groomes both fire a Nova Bomb into the battleship's hangar.

"We got ten seconds to clear the blast radius." Lazlo shouts.

Timothy, Lazlo, Groomes, Panther, Nelson, and Marks fly away as fast as they can. They head towards Bobcat, Storm, Cross, Wilson, and Grieves were fighting the rebels thinking that they need help. They find that the rebel fighters have already been defeated.

"You guys destroyed them all already?" Lazlo shouts.

"Yeah, they were easy to beat."

The Wild Cats stop and watch the fireworks. The rebel battleship explodes in the distance. The explosion is so big that it looks like a nuclear bomb going off.

"That is beautiful" Jonathan says, revealing his pyromaniac side.

"Yeah, there's nothing more beautiful that watching those who deserve it die." Bobcat replies back sadistically.

"Amen to that Colonel. This mission couldn't have gone any better."

"True, this was one of those occasions where everything went exactly as planned. I've been doing this for 15 years. That's one of those once in a blue moon kind of things." Bobcat says confidently. "So was anyone hit?"

"No sir, none of us took a hit."

"So what now Colonel?" Groomes asks.

"I guess we had back to Zaldon. Command will be happy to hear that we've succeed."

The Wild Cats Squadron starts heading back to Zaldon. But then Troy senses something in the distance.

"Uh Colonel, my senses are telling me something."

"What is it Troy?"

"I sense rebel transport ships fleeing the area. The same rebels that we just fought."

"Troy, your senses must be off. We killed them all." Panther shouts.

"Panther shut up." Bobcat orders. "Troy, are you sure about that?"

"Yes sir, I'm positive."

Bobcat doesn't respond. His radar doesn't detect anything. Plus he just saw the rebel battleship blow up.

"Colonel, trust Troy's senses. The Cerinian Foxes have outstanding telepathic abilities. Their even stronger than mine." Jonathan butts in.

"Alright Johnny, I'll take your word for it." Bobcat replies. "Troy, what are your senses telling you?"

"The rebels used transport ships to escape while we were leading their fighters into our trap. The transport ships were equipped with cloaking devices so our radios wouldn't pick them up."

"Damn it, Command is not going to like this. If we let these scumbags get away, Command will probably scrap this unit."

"Colonel, I can tell where they're heading."

"You can do that Troy?" Bobcat shouts.

"Of course I can."

So where are those bastards heading?"

"Their head to a planet in the Lylat System. Some backwater planet called Papetoon."

"Then we go after them. Who's with me?" Bobcat shouts.

The entire Wild Cats Squadron shouts back. They've gone this far, now is not the time to back out.

**The Wild Cats Squadron made a big mistake. The rebels are now heading to the helpless planet of Papetoon. Can the Wild Cats catch them in time to save the planet? Will they avenge the innocent lives that the rebels took?**


	3. Chapter 2 Back Home

**Rebel forces fleeing towards Papetoon, this can only mean trouble for the peaceful planet. What will they do when they arrive? Who will stand in their way?**

Chapter 2: Back Home

Papetoon finally comes into view. Fox McCloud, Falco Lombardi, Slippy Toad, Peppy Hare, and Star Fox's newest member Fara Phoenix, are glad to finally see it. It's been twelve hours since they've traveled through the Black Hole and defeated Andross. The only thing on their mind right now is celebrating, and getting the rid of the cramps in their legs.

"I love flying in all but I can't wait to get out of this dang ship and stretch my legs."

"Dang it Falco, will you stop complaining. It's starting to get annoying." Fara shouts.

"I thought that you'd be used to Falco's bitching by now Fara. It's all he ever does." Peppy butts in.

"True, that's all he did in the Academy."

"What is going on here? Have I become Slippy?"

"Shut up Falco."

Fara flies up to Fox so she can see him. She blocks the others radio channel so no one can hear them.

"You've been really quiet Fox."

"I'm just contemplating what we've done. Andross, the man who killed my father, is defeated."

"Feels good doesn't it Fox."

"It does, I just don't know what I'm going to do now."

"I'm sure you'll think of something Fox. You always do."

Fara sees Fox smiling in the Arwing. He winks at her and Fara blushes.

"Halt unidentified aircraft, this is the Cornerian military. You are in restricted space. Turn or we will fire on you."

Fox quickly realizes that he's forgotten to radio the Cornerian military about their success on Venom.

"It's the Star Fox mercenary team. Please do not fire."

"Oh sorry guys, you have permission to land at the Papetoon military base."

"Thank you"

"What an idiot?" Falco whispers not realizing that radio is on.

"Falco, you moron. If you weren't in your ship I'd slap that empty head off your shoulders." Peppy shouts.

Half an hour later, Star Fox has landed at the Papetoon military base. The Cornerian base is more of an outpost than a base. It barely supports a squadron of ships. It's not much of a base, but it's the only one that Papetoon's got.

Star Fox lands in the runway. As soon as they land, the entire base runs out to congratulate them.

"STAR FOX, STAR FOX, STAR FOX!" The soldiers cheer.

Fox is overtaken with shock. He wasn't expecting a welcome home party like this. The whole thing is overwhelming for him. Fox doesn't know to respond. He just stands there. Slippy and Fara are experiencing the same thing.

Peppy on the other hand, are handling the whole thing very well. Peppy is used to this sort of thing. His experience with the original Star Fox is serving him pretty well. Peppy waves at the soldiers.

Falco is handling the cheering a little too well. He's enjoying it. Falco's practically feeding off their energy. It's giving him a bigger ego, if such a thing is possible.

"Oh crap" Slippy whispers.

"What is it Slippy?" Fara asks.

"Falco's getting a bigger head."

Fara tries not to laugh. "If his head gets any bigger he's not going to be able to walk. His legs will break just from the weight."

The Cornerian soldiers surprise Star Fox by lifting them up on their shoulders and carry them around the base. It's almost an overload for Fox, Slippy, and Fara.

"_This is new"_ Fox thinks.

Suddenly, the cheering stops. Fox, Peppy, Falco, Slippy, and Fara are lowered to the ground. The soldiers come to attention. An officer stands before them. The officer walks up to Star Fox. At first he does nothing. But then he salutes Star Fox. They salute him back.

"Fox McCloud, I'm Captain Shears, CO of Papetoon Cornerian Base. It'd be an honor if I could shake your hand"

Captain Shears extends his hand to Fox. Fox graciously accepts Captain Shear's gesture.

"I have a message for you Fox from General Pepper."

"What is it Captain?"

"General Pepper said that he is coming here to debrief you. He will arrive at 1000 tomorrow."

"Thank you Captain" Fox turns to his teammates. "We're heading back to the Fox Den. We'll be back here tomorrow morning. But tonight, go and celebrate. We've earned it."

"You don't have to me tell you Fox." Falco shouts.

That night Fox, Falco, Slippy, and Fara are heading to a bonfire at a nearby Papetoon beach. The Cornerian soldiers set it up when they heard that Star Fox was going.

"So Fox, why isn't Peppy coming?" Slippy asks."

"He wanted to sleep in. You know how the old geezer gets after a mission."

The beach is bustling with activity when Fox, Falco, Slippy, and Fara arrive. The Cornerian soldiers shout when they see them. The music and dancing starts immediately.

Ten minutes into the party, Fara feels someone tap her on the shoulders. Fara turns around and sees a female fox with orange fur and white stripes.

"Madison" Fara shouts and hugs her.

"Fara, it's been a long time. How've you been girl?"

"Pretty good, I'm a member of Star Fox and I'm dating the love of my life."

"You're dating Fox?"

"Yeah, been dating Fox for a while now. How are things with you?"

"Can't complain at the moment. I finished sniper training and I graduate from the Academy in less than a month. I'm here shadowing Sergeant Jackson."

"Awesome girl"

Ten minutes later, Fara and Madison are sitting at the edge of the beach by themselves. As their talking, Madison notices something about Fara.

"So Fara, I see that you are in love with Fox."

"Dang those Cerinian telepathic abilities of yours. Yes, I am in love with him. But I'm afraid that he doesn't love me back."

"If it helps, I can tell you that he loves your back, though it may not be in the same way."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, Fox's love for you may be just sibling love. You've been like a sister to him. So seeing you as a lover may be difficult. I wish that I could tell you more but my telepathic abilities are limited. I've had no one to teach me how to master it."

"That'd be nice." Fara replies. "So Madison, do you have a boyfriend?"

"No, I've been too busy."

"Too busy with what?"

"Trying to secure my future. Do you have any idea how hard it is to pass sniper school, graduate from the academy, and organize a career at the same time? It's very difficult and frustrating."

"I beat it is. But you've gotta be interested in someone."

"No, not really. I've never really found anyone. Every guy in the past has either been a jackass or only been interested in my body. And you know that's not going to happen. The only guy that has ever really been kind to me is Fox and I'm not going to date him. It's not because you're dating him.'

'Then what is it?"

"You don't know?" Madison replies shock.

"Don't know what?"

"His parent's adopted me when I was a baby. We're like brother and sister. Dating him would be awkward."

"That's a good point. But what I don't understand is why Fox never told me that you two were brother and sister."

"I think that it was more for protection. When James' reputation started rising, people started coming after him. So in order to protect me, James made me drop the drop part of the McCloud from my name. I became Madison Cloud. James knew that it would work. I look nothing like the man."

"That makes sense, but what about Fox?"

"There wasn't much that James could do about that. Fox looks like a mini James. So he enrolled Fox in the Academy for his protection."

"That actually explains a lot. There are very few places safer than the Academy."

At that moment, Madison sees Fox approaching from them. Madison jumps up and runs to Fox.

"FOX!"

Madison almost jumps on Fox. She wraps her arms around his neck and refuses to let go. Madison squeezes Fox's neck so tight that he has difficulty breathing.

"Can you stop choking me sis?"

"Sorry Fox" Madison lets go of Fox's neck. "Three months and no call or letter. What is wrong with you bro? I've been worried sick about you."

"I've been busy. Saving Lylat is more difficult than you think."

Madison can't help but laugh. She hides it well. "It's great to see you again Fox. We need to catch up."

"Sounds good, but now is not a good time."

"Why not?"

"I was going to ask Fara to dance."

Fox offers Fara his hand. Fara accepts and Fox leads Fara into the middle of the crowd.

"I didn't know that you could dance Fox?"

"I can't dance. I'm just hoping that I don't accidently hurt yak."

Fara smiles and grabs Fox's hand. She places them on her hips and wraps her arms around his neck. Fox and Fara's faces are inches apart. They stare into each other's eyes. Fara leads Fox side to side.

Deep down, Fara desperately wants to tell Fox how she really feels. Being this close to Fox makes her heart beat so fast that it feels like it is going to explode. But the possibility of rejection keeps her from telling him.

"I really like you Fara." Fox finally says.

"_That's not good enough Fox. If only I knew how you felt about me." _

"I really like you to Fox."

Fara kisses Fox lightly on the lips.

0930 Next Morning

Fox and Fara are making their way to the briefing with General Pepper. The base is bustling with activity. Fox and Fara find this a little unusual. Falco and Slippy like to sleep in. Falco usually doesn't wake up to 1000, with Peppy throwing him out of bed.

"Hey Fox wait up."

Madison comes running up from nowhere. She's carrying a rifle that Fox and Fara are unfamiliar with.

"What's up Madison?"

"Not much Fox. There's not a whole lot to do with Andross defeated."

"Sorry about that." Fox apologizes. "We're on our way to a debrief. How about you join us?"

"Sure, I got nothing else to do."

"Great, this can count as us catching up. You can start by telling me what kind of rifle that is."

"Oh you like this don't you. It's a M4 37mm. I became proficient with it in sniper school. Trust me, you'd like it."

"I beat I would."

Madison is about to say something but she sudden stops dead in her tracks. To Fox and Fara, it looks like Madison just froze.

"What is Madison?"

"I don't know. I'm detecting some kind of hostile force. I don't know who they are. All I can tell is that they are on their way here as we speak."

"Are you sure about that Madison?" Fara asks.

"Fara, I've come to trust Madison's senses. If she says that something hostiles are on their way here I believe her." Fox defends.

"So what do we do?"

Fara is answered by the roar of transport ships. Five transport ships appear out of nowhere and hover over the Cornerian base. Dozens of armed combatants drop from the ships.

"I hate it when you're right Madison."

**Papetoon is under attack by an unknown enemy. Can Star Fox save the day again?**

**In this chapter was a reference to a character from the comic "Farewell Beloved Falco." If you were paying attention you may have noticed. I didn't want it to be too obvious.**


	4. Chapter 3 Rebel Attack

An unknown enemy attacks Papetoon. The members of Star Fox are the only ones that can help. Or are they?

Chapter 3: Rebel Attack

Within moments the Papetoon base is overrun with unknown combatants. They attacked so suddenly that they catch the base unaware. Most of the soldiers are unarmed when the attack happens. The Cornerian soldiers are unable to defend the base. The combatants attack so quickly and tactically that most of the Papetoon base is theirs within minutes. Dozens of Cornerian soldiers are killed in the first few minutes. Those that survive retreat to the inner sanctuary to defend what's left. Captain Shears does what he can but it is obvious that he outmatched. He tries to get the defense guns up and operational but finds out that the combatants have already disabled them. The base's power supply as their first target. The only defense the base has now are the soldiers and they are divided. Half are defending the sanctuary and the other half is defending the ammunition building. Fox, Fara, and Madison are defending the ammo.

Fox, Fara, and Madison take cover behind a wall.

"The one day I forget my pistol." Fara shouts ashamed.

"Seriously Fara, how could you forget to bring your pistol?" Madison shouts.

"I had no reason to think that I'd need it. I thought that all of our problems were done when we defeated Andross."

Madison cocks her M4 37mm. Fox pops his head around the corner and ducks back just as a laser flies past his head. The combatants are trying to surround them. They have the Cornerians surrounded on the front and the left. They are working on the getting the right side pinned down.

"Well soon there'll be plenty of weapons on the ground." Fox shouts, referring to the fact that if the situation doesn't change soon, Fara should not have no problem picking up a dead Cornerian soldier's weapon.

Madison hears several combatants approaching on the right. She quickly jumps around the corner and fires her 37mm at them. The round hits the group leader and explodes, killing all of them. Madison jumps back behind cover just as shrapnel barely misses her head. But no sooner does Madison take cover, five more combatants appear in the same direction.

"Man, these guys are persistent. Please tell me you got a plan Fox."

"Not really, I called Falco for back up. But until he arrives we're just going to have to survive. Fortunately, I have a plan. There's only five on our right. Madison, do you got a flash bang on you?"

"Of course" Madison reaches into her pocket and pulls out a flash bang grenade.

"Good, throw it at them."

Madison tosses the flash bang right at the combatants. The grenade explodes, temporarily stunning them.

"Stay behind me Fara."

"You don't have to tell me twice."

Fox and Madison jump out of cover and have a mad minute of the combatants. They mow them down like ants getting crushed under a boot. Fara stays close behind Fox and Madison. They run to the cover behind a stack of crates.

"So what's the plan now Fox?"

"Simple, we flank them. We have the element of surprise now."

"No you don't"

Before they can react Fox, Fara, and Madison are on the ground. Six combatants were waiting for them. They hold Fox, Fara, and Madison down and cuff them. Their faces are forced into the ground. Fara looks up and spots six large Cats standing over her. They are all dressed in black SpecOps outfits. All six of them are wearing masks and carrying CQB M4 blasters.

"So Lieutenant, what do we do with them? I recommend we kill em."

"Do what you want to do them?"

The Lieutenant walks away, leaving Fox, Fara, and Madison in the hands of murderers. The combatants lift them to their knees. Several of them look at Fara and Madison with lust.

"You try to have your way with me and I'll tear your dick off." Madison shouts.

The combatants just laugh at Madison. One of them walks over to Madison and grabs her by the hair. He lifts Madison up to his face.

"You're not my first radio. And you're definitely not going to be my . . ."

The attacker's sentence is suddenly cut short by a sword piercing his back. He is suddenly lifted off the ground. The sword protrudes through his chest. Standing behind him is large, muscular Black Wolf. His presence is alone is scary. But his appearance is something else. He is dressed all black combat outfit like the rebels but his outfit is more military. His face his hidden behind a skull bandana, aviator sunglasses, and a berate. He has a long pony tail that extends all the way down his back. Strapped on his back is an AA12. His gloves are brass metal knuckles. The jacket he's wearing has the Zaldon military signature on the left shoulder. But on the right is some kind of symbol that Fox, Fara, and Madison have never seen before; a Wild Cat on fire. But his sword is by far the most terrifying. The blade is shaped like a Katana and looks to be just as sharp and deadly. But running along the back of the blade are five 6' inch long, curved blade that appear to be used primarily like a chain. The back blades look sharp enough to easily ripe a person's arm off and tear through flesh.

"I think she is going to be your last rebel scum." The Wolf whispers before pulling the sword out. As the wolf pulls the sword out, the attacker's insides are pulled out. The attacker collapses on the ground in his own guts.

The five remaining combatants back off stunned. All of them have guns but after seeing their friend get his insides pull out, they are all too stunned to use them. The wolf just stands there clinching his sword, waiting for them to attack.

"So who wants to die first?"

Before the combatants can respond, the Wolf strikes down the two closest to him. His sword rips through their bodies like a knife through butter. He turns to the two on his left and decapitates them both with a single slash. The two remaining combatants are so stunned that they can hardly move. One of them tries to grab Madison to use her as a shield. But the wolf is on him before he reaches Madison. The wolf cuts him in half vertically with one slash. The remaining attacker aims at the wolf but is too slow. The wolf catches the attacker's rifle with the curved blades of his sword. He slightly pulls back, cutting the attacker's rifle in half. The wolf rotates his sword making the curved, back blades his primary attacking side. He slices the attacker across the chest. The curved blades tear through the attacker's chest like a chainsaw. In less than five seconds, the Wolf has killed six combatants armed with guns with only a sword.

The Wolf walks over the Fox, Fara, and Madison and helps them up.

"Are you guys alright?" The Wolf asks in a deep but kind voice.

Fara and Madison are too stunned to respond. Fox has to speak for them. "We're ok, those bastards just caught us off guard."

"Glad to hear it. You guys are very lucky. These rebels scum are known for their brutal tactics."

The Wolf pulls out knife and walks towards them. They back away from him thinking that he is going to cut them.

"I'm here to help you guys."

Before the wolf can cut them free, another attacker appears out of nowhere and rushes the wolf from behind. He stabs the wolf in the back. The wolf hardly acknowledges the wound. But the attacker, not so much. The Wolf grabs the attacker's knife hand and leg. He lifts the attacker off the ground and over his head. The Wolf slams the attacker on the ground as hard as he can, breaking his neck. He pulls out the knife and throws it aside.

"Thank God for Kevlar."

The Wolf then cuts Fox, Fara, and Madison free.

Out of the corner of her eye, Fara sees another attacker. She tries to warn the wolf but the attacker is shot first.

"Nice shot Troy." The wolf radios.

Fox, Fara, and Madison cannot hear the response. The Wolf notices that they are all wearing headsets.

"Turn your headsets to channel 7."

"Who are you to order us?" Madison demands.

"2nd Lieutenant Jonathan Storm of the Zaldon Military. The Wild Cats Squadron to be exact."

"The Wild Cats!" Fara exclaims excitedly.

"Yeah, we're here to help. We're about to launch our counterattack. Our men are getting into position as we speak."

Jonathan reaches behind and tosses Fara an XLR assault rifle.

"You're gonna need that. It's better than anything you'll find on the ground."

"What about you?"

Jonathan unstraps the AA12 and loads it.

"I got some a little bigger."

At that moment, Lieutenant Colonel's Bobcat Harrison's voice comes over the radio. "Attention Wild Cats and Cornerian soldiers. Help has arrived. My men are in position and ready to launch a counterattack. Timothy, stand back and take out anyone who tries to flee. Gideon, Grieves, Wilson, stand by to attack. Troy, snipe any rebel you see. Lazlo, Nelson, Marks, get ready to drive them out. Caruso, Storm, do what you guys do best."

Out of nowhere, Fara hears the sound of approaching starfighters. She looks up and sees three Strikers appear out of thin air and attack the three transport ships. In one second, all three transport ships are blown into a million pieces.

"Everyone attack"

Jonathan cocks back his AA12.

"So Lieutenant Storm, what is it you do best?" Fara asks.

"Annihilate anything in my path. Just stay behind me and you'll be alright. By the way, ya'll can call me Johnny."

Johnny jumps out from behind cover firing. His AA12 is so loud that it shocks Fox, Fara, and Madison. Johnny's AA12 spits out over 250 rounds of lead a minute at the rebels. It practically fires a wall of lead. This is proven at the first rebels that Johnny comes across. Three rebels are bunched together. The AA12 mows them down like grass.

Johnny practically walks right into the middle of a fire fight. With the AA12 in his hands and Troy providing sniper cover, he can do that. Johnny mows down anyone in his path. Any rebel that pops his head out is mowed down.

Fox and Fara stay close behind Johnny. Madison stays back a little, which allows her to uses her sniper rifle. She picks off targets as they come into her scope. Fox and Fara try to keep up with Johnny but he moves too fast. They try dotting for cover while Johnny just walks right into the open and doesn't get hit. Johnny is so effective and accurate, that he shoots any targets before Fox and Fara can. He drives the rebels back into one group.

"Holy crap, who trained this guy?" Fox shouts.

"I don't think training has anything to do with it. It appears to me that he doesn't have any fear of death."

Fox and Fara notice three more guys, dressed similar to Johnny, appear from the right. They approach the rebels from the front. The rebels jump up and try to take cover. Another guy comes from the flank and opens fire on the rebels. He mows them down.

"Good job Panther." Johnny shouts.

Johnny's response is a loud roar.

"What the heck was that?" Fara shouts.

"That's a bear. No doubt armed with a gravity hammer." Johnny answers.

"How do you know that?"

"I've gone up against a few in the past."

"How do you deal with them?"

"You can shoot them, which is no fun. Or you can what I'm about to do."

The bear appears out of nowhere. It stands at least 8 feet tall and is covered in armored. Saliva is drooling from his fangs. His face and eyes say death. In his arms is a gigantic gravity hammer.

"That armor is too thick for bullets and lasers." Fox shouts.

"It's got no armor in the eye." Troy answers. "Johnny, I can take him out no problem from here."

"No Troy, I want to have some fun with this guy."

"Alright, I'll be here if you need me."

Johnny walks up into the bear's view. The bear roars at him. Johnny doesn't even move.

"Dang, that guy is either really brave or really stupid." Madison says.

"You know your radio's turned on don't you?" Johnny answers back.

"Oh, my bad"

Johnny surprises everyone by pulling out his sword instead of going for his AA12. The bear laughs at him.

In her radio, Fara hears comments from the other Wild Cats. They are placing bets on how long it will take for Johnny to kill the bear. The quickest time is five seconds, placed by Troy Groomes.

"Move aside little man or I will squash you like a bug."

"Big talk for a giant floor rug."

The bear, infuriated, rushes at Johnny. Johnny just stands there. He double grips his sword. His sword starts to glow. The bear rushes at Johnny full speed. He jumps into the air bringing his hammer over his head. The hammer comes down right on Johnny. Johnny blocks the attack with the flat side of his sword. But instead of crushing him like it was supposed to do, the gravity hammer has no effect on Johnny. His sword appears to absorb the energy from the hammer.

Johnny pushes the bear back. The bear is stunned.

"My turn"

Johnny directs the absorbed he energy through his sword. He turns it into an energy blast and aims it at the bear. A blast hits the bear with the force of a rocket launcher, annihilating it from the face of Papetoon.

"DROP YOUR WEAPONS AND SURRENDER OR DIE!" Is heard over the PA system.

Not having many options, the rebels drop their weapons and surrender.

"Troy, how long was that?" Johnny shouts.

"4.2 seconds"

"Looks like you win the money."

"We'll split it"

When the rebels see their champion fall they flee. But out of nowhere, a Dreadnaught class ship appears directly over the rebels. All of its weapons are aimed at them.

Johnny sheaths his sword. The entire Wild Cats Squadron surround him, congratulating him on his kill. But the moment is cut short with Captain Shears running towards them. He appears to be very angry.

"Look at all the damage you guys caused. Who do you guys think you are?"

Bobcat turns and faces the Captain.

"Lieutenant Colonel Bobcat Harrison of the Wild Cats Squadron, Captain."

Captain Shears looks like he is about to pass out when he realizes that he has just insulted a superior officer.

"Please forgive me Colonel."

"I'll think about it Captain. But you'll have time to earn my respect back. My team is going to remain here to fix the damages these rebel scumbags caused."

"We appreciate your team's presence here. But it is not necessary. We can handle the damages sir."

"I don't doubt it. But how are you going to explain all this to General Pepper when he gets here without us?" Bobcat replies cockily.

Captain Shears just at Bobcat. There is no way in heck he can explain all this. He doesn't even know what happened.

"That's what I thought." Bobcat simply turns and walks away. "Besides, I think that General Pepper will be glad to see an old friend."

Papetoon is safe for now. But who are these Wild Cats? Are the rebels really defeated? What does Bobcat mean by old friends?


	5. Chapter 4 The reason we're here

Papetoon has been saved by an elite military unit called the Wild Cats Squadron. Who are they? Where are they from? What are they doing here? And how does Bobcat know General Pepper?

Chapter 4: The reason we're were . . .

_Five minutes later_

Fox, Fara, and Madison make their way to the hospital. All of them are injured in some way, none of their injures are severe. The most severe injury they have is a minor cut to Fara' arm. But they find the hospital in complete chaos. Dozens of Cornerian soldiers were injured in the firefight. Doctors and nurses are running around like crazy. Too many injuries, not enough staff and supplies. Due to the number of injuries, the hospital has been closed down to only those with life - threatening injuries. Blood and guts are all over the place. The groans of dozens of injured soldiers echoes throughout the hospital, making hearing impossible. The smell, blood, and broken bodies sickens Fara. She has to gag to keep from vomiting.

"We should probably get out of here Fox. This place is making me sick."

"I agree with you completely."

"There's a medical tent nearby. We can go there." Madison recommends.

Madison leads Fox and Fara to the nearby medical tent. That's exactly what it is, a tent. They go in hoping to find it empty. But there are people already in there. Five members of the Wild Cats Squadron are inside. Leaning against the wall in the corner is a large Lion. Seated on a bench nearby is a Jaguar and a Panther. Standing next to them is a fox with blue fur and orange stripes. Johnny is sitting on the medical bench, waiting for the doctor to examine him. Fox, Fara, and Madison cautiously enter the room. They take a seat hoping not to be noticed.

"What's up kids?" Johnny shouts when he notices them.

"We're not kids you moron." Madison shouts.

"Are you 18?"

"Nope"

"Then you're kids."

"Do you really have to insult us?"

"I'm not insulting you. I'm just calling you what you are."

Madison rolls her eyes.

Fara hasn't heard a word of the conversation. She is too busy looking at Johnny. He's not wearing the bandana or his sunglasses right now so this is the first time she's seen his face. Johnny is actually pretty handsome. Fara is having a hard time not staring at him, especially his pretty green eyes. But Fara's love for Fox quickly snaps her out of it.

"So Johnny, who are these guys?" Fox asks.

"Oh, where are my manners?" Points towards the Jaguar and Panther. "That's Timothy Jones and Panther Caruso . . ." Points towards the Lion. "That jackass over there is Gideon . . ." Points towards the stripped Fox. "And that's Troy Groomes."

Now it's Fox's turn. "Hey, I'm Fox McCloud. This is Fara Phoenix and Madison Cloud."

"Madison, your half Cerinian right?" Troy calmly asks.

"Yes, how did you know?"

"All Cerinians have a telepathic ability that allows us to detect other Cerinians, even hybrids like us."

"You're Cerinian?"

"A Cerinian/Red Fox hybrid, like yourself."

Madison instantly bombards Troy with questions about Cerinia. She hasn't seen another Cerinian or been there in years. While Madison constantly questions Troy, Fara sees this as an opportunity to question Johnny.

"So Johnny, what happened with the bear?" Fara asks.

"You're talking about my sword right?"

"Yeah, what you did was amazing."

"Amazing might be a bit much. But I'm used to it." Johnny pulls out his sword for Fara to see. Its appearance alone is scary. Johnny points to a stone on the hilt. "This stone is a special stone that is found only on Cerinia. It gives the sword it special abilities, which can only be activated with a double grip. When activated it allows my sword to cut through absolutely anything, including force fields and energy. But it can also absorb energy. Once I got it, I can redirect into an attack, like you saw with the bear."

"That's awesome, where'd you get it?"

"Cerinia, that's the only place you can find one."

"Why is that?"

"It's the only known planet that has cerinium. It's five times stronger than steel and a third the weight."

"Can I hold it?"

"Sure, I just have to make it accept you first."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean this sword bonds with its owner. If anyone but me uses it the stone will drain their energy from them and kill them. I have to be holding the sword for it not to kill you. Knowing that, do you still want to hold it?"

"I guess so" Fara answers a little shocked.

Johnny, holding onto the hilt, offers the sword to Fara. Fara gently grabs the hilt. She immediately feels a surge of energy coursing through her body. It tickles slightly. Johnny lets go giving the sword to Fara.

The sword is lighter than it looks. Fara can easily hold it with one hand. Swinging it around is not a problem. It feels good to hold such a powerful weapon in her hands. Fara sees a small metal pole a short distance away. She can't resist. Fara swings the sword at the pole, cutting it in half like a knife through butter.

"Now that's impressive."

Fara hands the sword back to Johnny. He puts it back in the sheath.

The doctor walks in right then. He's carrying Johnny's medical file.

"Alright, let's see what we got here. Name: 2nd Lieutenant Jonathan Storm. Home world: Cerinia. Species: Black Wolf. Age: 19. Height: 6'2". Weight: 250 pounds." The doctor looks Johnny over. "All of it muscle. Health classification: super human. No known diseases, retardations, or any physical or mental limitations. Is stronger, faster, and has more endurance than the average person." The doctor gets at look at Johnny's medical record. "Whoa, now this is something. At least one concussion, eight puncture wounds, twenty knife wounds, three burn scars, two gunshots wounds, punctured lung, and fifteen broken bones. And that's an estimate of course. It's a miracle you're still alive."

"I know, I get that a lot."

The doctor takes one last look at Johnny's medical record to makes sure he hasn't missed anything.

"Oh, I see 'do not give patient morphine' is highlighted, underlined, and in bold. I'm guessing that it's lethal to you."

"No, let's just say that morphine turns all Cerinians into psychos. It's more for your protection than mine. You give me a drop of that stuff and you'll probably die. The last time it happened, I went berserk and nearly killed an entire room full of doctors. It took all the will power I had to not kill them."

Everyone except Troy takes a step back. The doctor lays the morphine needle cautiously down on the table. Johnny can't help but smile.

"Ok, so what's the problem?" The doctor replies cautiously.

"I got a knife wound on my back. It's minor but I can tell you that it needs stitches."

"Is that what your extensive knowledge has lead you to believe?" The Doctor asks sarcastically.

"Very funny doc."

The doctor walks behind Johnny and lifts up his shirt.

"Your right about the injury. But it's a little more serious than you'd think. It's going to require at least three staples."

"Go ahead doc"

"You sure, this is going to be difficult without a pain killer."

"I've had worse pain."

"I believe it."

The doctor asks Johnny to hold up his shirt while he puts the staples in. Johnny hardly moves as the doctor staples his back.

"Wow, Fox that guy that knows how to handle pain." Fara whispers.

Gideon overhears Fox and Fara talking. He just shakes his head.

"You know Johnny, you're not as tough as you'd think."

Johnny just shakes his head and smiles.

"At least I'm not afraid of needles you stupid pansy."

Gideon glares at Johnny. The look would scare most people but Johnny doesn't even move. What Gideon does next takes it way too far.

"At least I wasn't banished from my home world."

All Fara sees a black blur charge Gideon. Johnny grabs Gideon's throat and pins him against the wall. The force from the blow is so powerful that Gideon's body leaves a dent in the wall. Johnny lifts Gideon off the ground by the throat. He then whispers something in Gideon's ear. It all happens so fast that no one responds at first. Panther, Troy, and Timothy just stand back and watch.

"Aren't you guys going to help your teammate?" Fox shouts.

"No, it's better for our health if we just stay out of it. Plus none of us likes Gideon anyway. This beating will be good for him." Troy answers.

Johnny lets go of Gideon's throat. Apparently he's finished saying whatever was on his mind. Gideon collapses on the ground gasping for breath. The look of fear and shock is on his face. Johnny walks back to the bench and takes a seat like nothing happened.

"You'll have to forgive the Lieutenant." Timothy says to Fox, Fara, and Madison. "His banishment is a very touchy subject. Johnny doesn't like bringing it up. But don't worry, Johnny is a nice guy once you get to know him, as long as you don't make him angry."

Fox, Fara, and Madison look at each cautiously. Johnny's outburst scared them. They've seen what he can do. Now knowing that he has a short temper increases their fear. There's nothing worse than a guy with a short temper that is also a highly trained martal artist and soldier.

Ten minutes later Fox, Fara, and Madison walk into the briefing room. Captain Shears is there waiting for them, along with Bobcat, Johnny, and Troy. The room is darkly light. Everyone's faces are hidden in the shadows. The whole thing makes Fox, Fara, and Madison feel a little cautious. They take a seat around the table.

What are you guys doing here?" Madison rudely asks Johnny and Troy.

"Bobcat likes having telepaths around, especially in a debriefing. We can tell if anyone is lying or about to betray us." Johnny answers.

"Ok, I guess that makes sense.

Fara can't help but notice how little Bobcat is compared to the rest of the Wild Cats. Bobcat is smaller than all the others. He can't be taller than 5'6". But the respect they have for Bobcat is amazing to say the least. The respect that the Wild Cats have Bobcat is greater than the respect Fox has for General Pepper. Bobcat carries himself in such a way that commands respect. Even Fox, who is a few inches taller and doesn't know Bobcat at all, already respects him.

General Pepper enters a few minutes later. He walks right past Bobcat, Johnny, and Troy. They are standing in the corner so Pepper doesn't see them.

"Can someone explain to me what the heck happened? It looks like a war zone out there."

"We were attacked General." Captain Shears replies. "At 0935, 300 unknown combatants attacked the base. Within a few minutes, they had all but eliminated us. But then we were rescued by the Wild Cats Squadron. 36 Cornerian soldiers were killed and 42 were injured. 76 of the combatants were killed, 45 were captured."

"The Wild Cats are here?" General Pepper replies shocked then turns to the Wild Cats. "Major Bobcat, is that you?"

"Yes old friend, it's me."

General Pepper almost runs to Bobcat and hugs him.

"Bobcat, I haven't seen you since fought the Ammonites together. How long has it been?"

"Ten years sir."

"Really, it's been that long. Huh, well how've you been Major?"

"I've been great. And it's Lieutenant Colonel now."

"Lieutenant Colonel" General Pepper responds shocked. "Shouldn't you be sitting behind a desk filing papers?"

"No sir, you know that I would rather die a slow and painful death than sit behind a desk."

"Now that's the Bobcat I know. You'll be a warrior till the day you die." General Pepper turns to everyone else. "Ya'll should be worshipping this man. Bobcat is the best soldier that I've ever seen."

"Except for James McCloud sir." Bobcat corrects.

Fox nearly jumps when he hears Bobcat mention his father.

"You knew my father?"

Bobcat looks Fox over real quick. He's the spitting image of James, just with darker fur. Bobcat didn't realize it till just now. He walks over to where Fox is standing.

"I knew your father pretty well." Bobcat extends his hand to Fox. "It'd be an honor if I could shake your hand."

Fox stares at Bobcat's hand at first. He's a little cautious around Bobcat. But Fox eventually shakes Bobcat's hand. Bobcat has a much stronger grip. He nearly crushes Fox's hand. The strength that Bobcat possesses is amazing to say the least.

"How do you know my father?"

"I've known your father since we were kids. He was one of my best friends. We served in the Husky Squadron together, along with Pepper here. Your father even helped me create the Wild Cat's Squadron nearly twenty years ago."

"He never told me that."

"I'm not surprised. Back when the Wild Cats Squadron was created we were sworn to secrecy. Just speaking about the unit was considered treason. But times have changed. I can tell you some things about your father but not everything. But that will have to be later. Right now I have to debrief ya'll on the situation."

Bobcat makes his way to the front of the room.

"Sir, before I start I want to say that I am sorry for everything. All this is my fault. I made a mistake on a mission. As you are aware of General, Zaldon is currently experiencing a rebellion. The rebels believe that Zaldon has too much control over the Genesis System. They want to see Zaldon withdraw its forces from the other planets and the government dissolved. These rebels are very brutal in their tactics. They have resulted to terrorism and guerilla warfare. It is not uncommon for them to target innocent civilians. That's why we're here. A few days ago, a group of rebels attacked a mining facility on Moldova. They killed 250 civilians. My team was assigned to take them out. We tracked them down and managed to eliminate their battleships and most of them. But some of them escaped and fled here. They came here and attacked the base. We arrived just in time to save your men. That is all that I'm allowed to tell you General."

"Thank you for your help Bobcat. We appreciate your help."

"You're welcome General. If it's alright with you, I would like to stay and help you rebuild the base."

"Of course you can. You and your men can stay as long as you want."

"Thank you General"

Bobcat, Johnny, and Troy turn to leave. Their job at the meeting is done. They walk out leaving General Pepper, Fox, Fara, Madison, and Captain Shears alone.

"Hey Bobcat, you said that James McCloud was that Fox guy's father in there?" Johnny asked when they are outside.

"Yes why?"

"James was famous on Cerinia. He saved our people once." Troy answers.

"And don't forget that he married a Cerinian." Johnny adds.

"Oh yeah, I complete forgot about that. Vixy was full blood Cerinian. I remember meeting her. She was very beautiful."

"She was among one of the most beautiful of Cerinian. I was just barely old enough to remember her when she and James moved away."

"I don't think that Fox knows about his Cerinian heritage." Troy says.

"I think you're right Troy." Johnny replies. "Maybe we should tell him."

"No, he's better off not knowing at the moment. I'll tell him later."

Inside the briefing room Fox is explaining what happened on the mission to Venom. General Pepper wants to know every little detail. It's taking forever. Fara and Madison are getting bored.

"That Troy guy's pretty cute." Madison whispers to Fara.

"I guess so. But I think that Johnny's cuter."

"Maybe, but his pony tail is a little ugly. I don't think he's ever cut it."

"Probably not, but his eyes make up for it. If I wasn't dating Fox I'd take at him."

The Wild Cats are here to stay for now. Bobcat knows things about James McCloud that Fox doesn't. What is he hiding from Fox?

If you want to see your OCs in a future Star Ghost story send me a private message of your OC's bio. - John Storm


	6. Chapter 5 Secrets Past

There are questions surrounding Bobcat's friendship with James McCloud. How did they meet? What did they do together? What does Bobcat know about James that Fox doesn't?

Chapter 5: Secret's Past

_Two hours later_

The damage that the rebels caused to the base in just ten minutes is almost unbelievable. The rebels have all but destroyed the base. Most of the base's defenses have been destroyed. Even the Anti – Air Defense guns have been disabled. The buildings themselves are intact. Apparently, the rebels planned on using the base after they defeated the Cornerian army. But the rebels destroyed everything else, including the ammo dumps. It'll take months for the base to be rebuilt.

The Wild Cats have been very helpful in repairing the base the past couple of hours. Their skills, experience, and knowledge have been very useful. They are very determined and energetic, except for Gideon. He just spend most of his time laying back. His arrogant attitude is already starting to piss everyone off. Timothy's mechanical skills and experience have been especially helpful. His skills can be comparable are even better than Slippy's. The two of them work with the base contractors to rebuild everything that broken. Bobcat spends his time with Captain Shears and General Pepper trying to get the base back into working order. The rest of the Wild Cats work with the soldiers performing manual labor. In just a couple of hours, they have completed work that would have taken days to finish.

Fox, Fara, Madison, Falco, Slippy, and Peppy are eating lunch in the courtyard. The past two hours have been exhausting. There is so much work to be done but not enough time and resources to do it. This lunch is the first time that they've taken a break in the past two hours. Falco is trying to convince the others to leave the base by explaining that this is not their problem. It's not working. Out of the corner of his eye Fox sees Bobcat, Johnny, Troy, and Timothy approaching them.

"You guys mind if we eat with you guys?"

"No, go right on ahead."

They sit down on the other side of the table. Bobcat seats across the table from Fox. Johnny sits beside him and across for Fara. Timothy and Troy sit beside him. Troy sits beside Madison. At first no one says a word. Peppy immediate jumps up and rushes at Bobcat. He hugs Bobcat on the spot.

"Bobcat, it's been forever since I've seen how."

"It's been a few years. How've you been old friend?"

"Been worse, been better"

"I understand buddy. I heard that Vivian passed away."

"She died a couple of years ago, disease. Lucy took it pretty hard."

"I'm sorry to hear that. I wish that I could've been there for you."

"You're here now, that's all that matters. How's life treating you?"

"Pretty good at the moment. Jennifer and I got married a few years back."

"Any kids?"

"Three at the moment."

"Excuse me for interrupting . . ." Fox shouts. ". . . but how do you guys know each other?"

"Shouldn't it be obvious at this point Fox?" Bobcat replies. "We all served in the Husky Squadron together twenty years ago. If you let me sit down, I'll explain it all you."

Fox allows them to sit down and eat with them. He's been wanting some answers ever since he heard that Bobcat knew his father.

"So Bobcat, tell me how you know my father."

"It's a long story junior."

"I don't care and don't call me junior."

"Alright, I thought that you want to be called James McCloud II."

"I don't like being called Junior. So I go by my middle name Fox."

"I guess that makes sense. I should probably start from the beginning of my story. You'll get a better understanding that way." Bobcat explains. "You see, I was born on the bad side of Corneria. My father left me and my mother when I was young. She raised on her own. But she got sick and we didn't have the money to fix her. That's when I met your father. He was an orphan living on the streets. James offered to help me save my mom. We robbed from those who had more than enough money but were too selfish to give any of it."

"You're lying, my father was not a thief." Fox shouts.

"We were not thieves. Thieves steal for no good reason. Your father and I stole because we had no choice. We did it for a good reason."

"What was it?"

"To save my mother. Unfortunately, we were too late. My mother died before we could get all the money."

Fox hangs in head in shame.

"I'm sorry"

"It's ok Fox. Your father and I gave all the money we stole to charity. We continued on stealing from the rich. Everything we stole went to help the poor. I guess you can say that we were like Robin Hood. But we were eventually caught and tried for our crimes. Fortunately, the Cornerian military offered us a way out. We joined the Cornerian Flight Academy, graduated, and joined the military as officers. It was there that we met Peppy. We were immediately recruited into the Husky Squadron. General Pepper was the CO at the time. We spent a few years together in the team. But that ended after the Sector Z Incident."

"What happened there?" Madison asks.

"It's a long story. I can't give you all the detail. But to sum it up, we were called in to investigate a pirate problem and the situation got way out of hand. A large battle took place. It was supposed to be just a small skirmish but that didn't happen. Your father and I took the blame. We didn't do anything, we were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. So we had to flee to the entire system. We somehow ended up on Zaldon were the government recruited us. They heard about our reputation. They asked us to create a BlackOps unit. Zaldon didn't have one at the time. So yes, your father and I are responsible for the Wild Cats Squadron."

"So what happened?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well obviously my father somehow ended back on Corneria. I want to know how."

"That's easy, your mother. He met her on a mission. She convinced him to retire from the military and move to Corneria. I stayed with the Zaldon military and the rest is history."

Fara hasn't heard a word of Fox and Bobcat's conversation. Her attention is entirely on Johnny. He is not wearing his jacket at the moment. All he has on is a Kevlar vest and pants, exposing his muscles to everyone. His arms are huge. Johnny looks like he has to strength to crush a person's skull with his bare hands. But what really gets her attention are the symbols on his shoulders. They appear to be burned into his skin. Madison is also having trouble paying attention, except she is focused on Troy. While Troy is not as muscular as Johnny, he looks to be more agile and quicker, he is just as handsome. But Madison is also attracted to the swords that Troy is carrying on his back, an Odachi and Katana with the blades interlocked.

"Hey Johnny, can I ask you a couple of questions?" Fara finally asks.

"Are they personal questions?"

"No, just curiosity"

"Then fire away."

"Ok, both of my questions have to be with your appearance. My first question is what do those symbols on your shoulders mean?"

Johnny looks at the burns on his shoulders and smiles.

"Fond memories, they are a status symbol. It's a rite of passage to become a man for my species. You see, my species has a warrior – based society. We start learning Muay Thai at the age of five. I guess you can say we start learning how to kill with our bare hands at that age. We learn to use our entire body as a weapon, how to control pain and fear, and how to endure."

"Basically what Johnny's saying is that his people produce the best warriors in the Genesis System. By the time their 18, a Black Wolf can do things that would be considered impossible. I would consider myself to be a tough warrior, but I would rather rush into a burning building than go up against a Black Wolf." Troy adds.

"He doesn't look so tough to me." Falco says cockily.

"Really, you think that you can beat me?" Johnny replies sarcastically.

"You bet I do." Falco shouts. "I bet that I can beat you right here, right now."

Falco jumps up, challenging Johnny. Johnny slowly gets up and walks in front of Falco. Johnny stands a little bit taller than Falco.

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

"What are you afraid?"

"Yes, I'm afraid that you're going to end up in hospital."

Falco angrily takes a fighting stance. Johnny just stands there with his arms by his side. Falco draws his fist back, gaining power, and swings full force at Johnny's head. Johnny ducks under Falco swing. Johnny comes up with an elbow strike to Falco's chin. The blow collides with the underside of Falco's beak. Falco collapses on the ground in a heap.

"And that's why I will not challenge a Black Wolf." Troy speaks.

Johnny walks back over to his seat like nothing happened.

"As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, in order to become a man we have to undergo a challenge. We have to fight 25 one minute rounds without any rest in between."

"You're joking right? There is no way that is possible." Fara exclaims.

"He's not joking" Troy replies. "I've seen them do it. I was there was Johnny did it. It's absolutely amazing to watch. After they pass they receive their Wolf Claws." Troy points to Johnny's shoulders. "They use a branding iron and burn it onto their shoulders."

"And how old were you when you did this Johnny?" Fara asks.

"Fifteen, I had a lot of fun memories."

"Had?"

"Yeah, I received a mild concussion during that event. I lost a few memories when that happened."

Fara just stares at Johnny. She has no idea how to respond to that.

"Why don't you have the symbol Troy?" Madison asks.

"My clan is different from Johnny's. We are not as much as a warrior society as Johnny's. We practice martal arts more for relaxation and health than war. But that doesn't mean that we're not warriors. We know how to handle ourselves in battle."

"Oh, I thought that our species were fighters." Madison replies a little ashamed.

"We are, just because we are a peaceful species doesn't mean that we're not dangerous in a fight."

"He's telling the truth Madison. Your people are very powerful warriors. Trust me, I've seen them in action."

Neither Fara nor Madison can say anything. Fara almost doesn't want to ask her second question. No one says a word. The moment quickly becomes tense and awkward.

"Are you going to ask your next question Fara?" Johnny asks to break the tension.

"Well, I was going to ask you about your pony tail. I've seen a military man with a pony tail before. I'm curious about how and why you hair is like that."

"Simple, the hair is a Black Wolf's honor. We will never cut our hair. To do so is a good way to lose one's honor and respect. When I joined the military, I was allowed to keep this pony tail for that reason. If I had cut my hair then I would lose my opportunity to return to Cerinia."

"But I thought that you were banished from Cerinia." Fara brings up.

"I was partially banished."

"What that does mean?" Slippy asks.

"It means that I can possibly return. But I have to do something honorable in order to earn it."

"What happens if you return before you earn it?"

"I'll be killed on the spot."

No one says a word. No one wants to say anything after hearing that. Fara and Madison still have questions that they want answered. But they don't want to ask them. Both don't want the situation to become awkward. They've already asked them too many questions. Madison wants to more about her people and Troy himself. She wants to know who her people are including their customs and abilities. But more importantly, she wants to know more about Troy. Madison has never been more attracted to anyone in her short life. Fara, on the other hand, wants to know more about Johnny. She is very curious about his banishment. Fara knows that she shouldn't be probing into Johnny's personal life but she can't resist. One way or another she's going to find out why he was banished.

Bobcat, James, Peppy, and General Pepper are old friends and former teammates. Johnny and Troy have proven themselves to be powerful and honorable warriors. But the question as to why Johnny was banished from Cerinia is pestering Fara. Why was he banished? All will be explained in the next chapter.

If you want to see your OCs in a future Star Ghost story send me a private message of your OC's bio. - John Storm


	7. Chapter 6 Johnny's Secret

What is Johnny's secret? Why was he banished from Cerinia? All will be revealed in this chapter.

P.S. During the memory of Johnny's past with Jasmine, the characters are speaking Cerinia. Even though it is written in English, imagine that they are speaking Cerinian.

Chapter 6: Johnny's Secret

2359

Fara looks out over the base from a nearby sand dune. Everything looks so peaceful for once on the barren planet. Ever since Andross became a threat to Lylat, Papetoon has been in constant chaos. Before then Papetoon had been plagued by bandits. It took everything the Cornerian Military had to get rid of the bandits. This is the first time in years that Papetoon has seen peace in years. Star Fox is the cause.

The cool night breeze brushes against Fara's soft fur causing goose to form all over her skin. Fara shakes as the winds blows through her. The cool night breeze tells Fara that for once Papetoon is at peace. It's good to finally have some peace and quiet on the planet. Fara looks out over the barren and arid landscape. The moonlight shines off the sand and trees, creating an almost illuminating effect. Most people consider Papetoon to be nothing more than a backwater planet because of its ugliness. But to Fara, there is no place more beautiful, especially at night. Fara is so distracted by the view that she doesn't notice Madison sneaking up behind her.

"Fara, what are you doing out here?"

Fara is so startled that she almost falls off the rock she's sitting on.

"Oh Madison, you scared me." It takes a moment for Fara to gather herself. "I was just thinking."

"Let me guess, you're thinking about how to tell Fox that you love him?"

"Dang you telepathic ability. Wait, what are you doing out here?"

"Couldn't sleep, so I decided to take a short walk. Want to join me?"

"Sure"

Fara and Madison walk around the base. There is no one around to distract them. All of the soldiers are sleeping, even the guards. No one expects an attack and has no reason to believe there will be, especially with the rebels behind bars.

The entire time Fara tries to explain her love for Fox to Madison. Madison tries to understand but finds it nearly impossible to. How can she? Madison's never been in love before. Troy's her first crush.

"Why don't you tell Peppy or your dad about it?"

"Because I'm too shy. I don't feel right about talking to anyone about this. It's awkward just talking to you."

"I'm sorry, I wish that I could be more helpful."

"It's ok, too bad you haven't mastered your telepathy or you could tell me how he truly feels."

"I think that'd be an invasion of privacy. Plus he's like a brother to me. It'd be really awkward."

"I guess you're right. I could never in good conscience ask you to do that."

Fara suddenly hears someone off in the distance. She immediately recognizes Johnny and Troy's voice.

"What are they still doing up?"

"Let's find out."

Fara and Madison quietly make their way over towards Johnny and Troy. They find them standing in the center of the training arena practicing martal arts. By the looks of things, Johnny appears to be teaching Troy some of his Muay Thai techniques. Fara and Madison hide behind a column so they don't disturb them.

Fara and Madison notice that Johnny and Troy are not wearing shirts, only pants. Their physical condition not only distracts but attracts Fara and Madison. Both are ripped beyond belief, Johnny more so than Troy. Johnny's chest and stomach are so buff that it looks like a mountain range. Despite standing twenty yards away, Fara can easily spot Johnny's six pack. He looks like a professional body builder combined with a marathon runner. Troy is much less muscular than Johnny. But Troy's appears to be more agile and flexible than Johnny. He looks like an athlete more than a body builder. Fara and Madison are having a hard time not drooling on themselves.

Standing before Troy is a 2x4 wooden pole. Johnny is standing beside him. Troy suddenly takes a defensive stance. He gathers all the power he can and delivers a roundhouse kick to the middle of the pole. The kick is so fast that Fara and Madison barely see it. However, Troy's kick lacks power. A large crack appears in the middle of the pole. Troy backs off disappointed.

"That was good Troy." Johnny says. "You've got speed and accuracy but you need power, otherwise you're not doing any real damage. Let me show me."

Johnny walks over to the pole, takes a defensive stance, and delivers a roundhouse kick a few inches below were Troy hit. His kick is just as fast but more powerful. Johnny breaks the pole in half no problem.

"You see Troy the secret is to put your whole body into the attack and redirect it through your strike. You do that and I guarantee you that this pole will break. Now try again."

Troy takes a deep breath and takes a defensive stance. He gathers all the strength he can and delivers another roundhouse kick a few inches below Johnnies. This time the pole breaks.

"Good job Troy."

"Thanks Johnny, can we go sleep now?"

"Not quite yet." Johnny turns to Fara and Madison who are still hiding behind the column. "I know ya'll are back there. Come on out."

Fara and Madison look at each other confused. Neither of them wants to walk out. How Johnny knew they were there is a mystery. They were very quiet.

Fara walks out into the open first. Madison reluctantly follows her.

"What are you guys doing out here this late?" Madison asks.

"Johnny's teaching me Muay Thai." Troy answers.

"Why, I thought that you were already a deadly fighter. What was it you said you were mastered?"

"Dragon Kung Fu"

"Ok, so why you are trying to learn Muay Thai? You already know a deadly martal art."

"I'm just trying to expand my knowledge. I figured that there's nobody to learn it from than a Black Wolf."

"I guess that makes sense. You're teaching your martal art to Johnny right?"

"No, he already knows it. He studied it a long time ago. He hasn't studied it to the extent that I have but he's still pretty good at it."

"I get it, because Johnny knows your martal art, he knows how to fill in the gaps, if there are any."

"Exactly"

"How did you know we were here?" Fara suddenly asks trying to get straight to the point.

"We heard you talking from a hundred yards away." Johnny answers.

"How much of the conversation did you hear?"

"All of it."

Fara blushes with embarrassment. She is so embarrassed that she almost runs away. Fara doesn't say a word. She just looks at Johnny waiting for him to say something.

"I think that I can help you Fara."

"How can you possibly help me?"

"Because I know exactly what you're going through, except that I was on Fox's end."

"Really, and how did that end for you?" Fara barks at Johnny.

"Pretty good, she loves me and I love her. The only problem is that I can't see her at the moment."

"Why not?"

"Because she's on Cerinia."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's ok, I'll see her again someday."

"For your sake, I hope you do. But I hate to be pushy her but how did you handle it?"

Johnny can't help but smiles.

"I think that it'd be better if I show you."

"What are you talking about?"

"I mean, we can have Troy do an MMG between us?"

"And what is that?"

"Simple, all I do is concentrate on a memory and Troy can link our minds together so you can view it."

"We can do that?" Madison asks Troy very surprised.

"Of course we can. We are telepaths after all." Troy answers.

"Is that safe?" Fara asks.

"Yes, all you gotta do is keep your mind clear. When you're viewing Johnny's memories do not think about anything else. You do and we will have to start all over again."

Fara thinks about it for a minute.

"Alright, I'll do it."

"Good, just sit down and don't think about anything."

Fara, Madison, Troy, and Johnny sit in a circle together. All of them clear the heads of any thoughts, except for Johnny. He concentrates on the both enjoyable and painful memory.

The memory comes in clear as bell, as if they are there. It takes place on Cerinia at night. The memory focuses on a large, brick house. A dense jungle is seen in the background. At first, Johnny is nowhere to be seen. But then he is visible in the background, hiding under a bush.

Johnny looks to be 16 at the time. But instead of seeing some immature, punk kid, they see something completely different. Despite being only 16, Johnny looks like he has the maturity, wisdom, experience, and confidence of someone twice his age. Fara sees the same sense of nobility in his eyes that he saw a minute ago. The only real differences between the younger and current Johnny is that the youngest Johnny is not as muscular and his hair cut. At this point in his life, Johnny has never cut any part of his hair before.

Johnny waits till every light in the house is off then, using the shadows, sneakily runs to the wall. He looks up at one window in particular. Inside he sees the outline a young vixen getting into bed. Johnny picks up a rock and tosses it at the window. Immediately, the most beautiful blue vixen that Fara and Madison have ever seen comes to the door. She appears to be the same age as Johnny with the same sense of nobility. Words cannot describe her beauty (she is wearing the same outfit that Krystal wore in Adventures). The moonlight shines off her blue fur and eyes like they're being illuminated.

The memory is immediately comes to a stop. Someone stopped concentrating on the memory and let other thoughts into their mind. Madison immediately looks at Troy and Johnny thinking that they were having "thoughts" about the young girl.

"Don't look at me." Johnny says. "I'm concentrating solely on the memory."

"It wasn't me." Troy says. "I have to keep the MMG going."

"It was me." Fara speaks up. "Now before you start thinking the obvious, I was just curious about who she is?"

"Her name is Jasmine. Her father is the Blue Fox clan leader."

"Oh, well no wonder you fell in love with her. She is gorgeous beyond belief. But why were you sneaking around?"

"Her father told her to stop seeing me. At the time, my older brother Triton, was being a little bit a rebel. Triton caused a lot of trouble. He thought that I was just like him. But instead of listening to him, Jasmine and I continued to see each other. Now can we get back to the memory?" Johnny asks sarcastically.

"Of course, I'm ready Troy."

The memory begins where they left off with Johnny on the ground and Jasmine looking out the window. Johnny waves to her and Jasmine winks back. Johnny takes a few steps back, gets a running start, and climbs up the wall like a spider monkey. In a couple second he's climbed up two stories to Jasmine's window. Johnny hangs onto the edge of the window seal just in case her father decides to come in. His face is inches from hers.

"Hello beautiful"

"Hello my little monkey."

Johnny leans in and lightly kisses Jasmine's rosy, red lips.

"Is your father asleep?"

"Yeah, he just went to bed. It's almost impossible to wake him up."

"Great, you wanna go to the point?"

"Sure, but you're gonna have to catch me."

"No problem"

Johnny lets go and falls two stories but lands expertly on his feet. Jasmine climbs out the window. She waves that she is about to jump. Johnny signals that he's got her. Jasmine jumps down two stories where Johnny easily catches her. He cradles her in his arms like a baby.

"I knew you'd catch me."

Johnny carries the beautiful vixen three miles to the point in his arms. The point is a bluff that is situated on the edge of the Cerinian Sea. At the point, a person can see for miles onto the sea. On a clear night the moonlight shines off a small portion water creating an illumination effect. On this particular night, the Cerinian moon is in the right position which makes the water glow a beautiful bluish color. Jasmine gasps when she sees the beauty lying before her.

"Jonathan, I've lived on Cerinia all my life and I've never been here before."

"Really, I find that very hard to believe. But at least you're here with me now. I brought you here tonight specifically because the sea reminds me of you."

A tear runs down Jasmine's cheek. Jonathan whips it away.

"No tear should ever come from you. You are too beautiful for that."

Jasmine is speechless. Jonathan has gone out of his way to show his feelings for her. Jasmine knows that now is the time to say it.

"Jonathan, there is something that I've wanted to say to you for a long time now. I . . . love you . . . with all of . . . my heart."

Jasmine's words hits Johnny like a brick to head. That was the last thing he expected Jasmine to say. He knew that Jasmine liked him, but to think that she loved him was something else. Sure Johnny likes Jasmine but does he love her back.

Jasmine notices the look on Johnny's face. It scares her to the bone. Has she just rushed their relationship? Jasmine knows that she loves Johnny, but saying it is something else. Is 16 too young to be in love?

Johnny gently grabs Jasmine's hands and looks deep into her eyes. He knows that he has to tell her the truth. Jasmine will know if he lies to her.

"Jasmine, I love you. I always have."

Jasmine jumps on top of Johnny knocking him to the ground. Johnny lands on the ground with a thud with Jasmine on top of him. Jasmine attacks Johnny's lips with hers. She attacks him continuously for a minute before letting Johnny up for air.

"You had me worried for a moment. I thought that I had made a big mistake."

I just listened to what my father told me. Listen to the wind, it talks. Listen to the silence, it speaks. Listen to your heart, it knows."

Jasmine laughs and continues to kiss Johnny.

Sunrise the next day

Johnny wakes to a light weight on a shoulder. He looks over and sees Jasmine asleep on his shoulder. Seeing the beautiful, blue vixen sleeping next to him causes his heart to beat so fast that it feels like it's going to burst out of his chest. She's looks so beautiful and peaceful that Johnny doesn't want to wake her up. But he knows that if Jasmine's not back home by the time her father is up then they're both going to be in serious trouble.

Johnny lightly runs his finger across Jasmine's cheek. Jasmine wakes up, looks Johnny in the eyes, and smiles.

"Good morning beautiful"

Johnny plants and gently kisses Jasmine's forehead. Jasmine runs her fingers through Johnny's chest fur. Johnny has to control himself.

"Jonathan, why didn't we do it last night? I was willing to give you my body. You could have done anything you wanted to me."

"I know, but it wouldn't have been right. That's not love. It's giving into the desires of a flesh, something that any idiot can do. It takes a real man to resist the resist those desires and do what its right. But trust me, it was very difficult for me to say no. You weren't making it easy."

"That was the idea."

"I know, my mind and body were telling me to go to town on you. But my heart was telling me know. The heart is what you listen to. Anyone can listen to the mind and body but they will lead you astray. The heart will always tell you what's right."

"That's why I love you Jonathan. You know what it right and you do it. You don't give into the peer pressure. You do what you think is right no matter what the consequence. You are beyond honorable. That's what separates you from every other man I've met. Now tell me, why do you love me? And don't say the obvious thing."

"Alright" Johnny replies with a smirk. "It's your compassion that I fell in love with. Jasmine, you are the nicest person I've ever met and you know that I don't lie."

"That's true, but I want to know when are we going to do it? I'm ready for you to be my first."

"And I'm ready for you to be mine. But I think that we should wait till we're married."

"Jonathan, you know that we can't get married for another two years right?"

"I know, but that's the right thing to do. I'm willing to make the commitment if you are."

Jasmine thinks about it for a minute. She would like to lose her virginity right now but she loves Johnny.

"I can wait."

Johnny and Jasmine share a long, passionate kiss. They only stop to get a breath.

"We need to go now." Jasmine says out of breath. "My father would kill us both if he found out about this."

"I know, that's why we need to get out of here now. I gotta meet my brother at the arena in a few minutes."

"Jonathan, it amazes me how you are the only person that I know of who still has respect for Triton. The guy is a jackass in the highest degree. His own wife took their son and left. That was something that I thought would never happen."

"How do you think I feel about it? The guy is my brother. He's an embarrassment to my family. But he wasn't always like that. He was once a good guy. I guess that I still have hope that the old Triton is still in there somewhere."

"I hope you're right Jonathan. Otherwise something really bad is going to happen."

Johnny finds Triton standing at the arena waiting for him. Upon seeing Triton, Fara and Madison instantly know why Jonathan respects him. From the way that he carries himself and his physical appearance, Triton has the look of a warrior. Triton appears to be six years older than Johnny. He looks just like Johnny except his eyes are a different color. Triton's definitely in better shape, has more battlefield experience, and is at least two inches taller. The nobility that Triton carries with him is greater than Johnny's. All in all, Triton appears to be a nobler person than Johnny.

Triton appears to be pissed off. He doesn't like to wait.

"Where've you been John? I've been waiting for you for twenty minutes."

"Sorry bro, there was something that I had to take care of. "

Triton shakes his head like he knows.

"You were with Jasmine last night weren't you?"

"How did you know?"

"John, I went through the same thing Elizabeth. So how it was?"

"How was what?"

"Losing your virginity. Did you enjoy it?"

"We didn't do it Triton. We decided to wait till we're married."

Triton shakes his head in disappointment.

"That was a big mistake little brother. But we're wasting time here talking about it. Father wants to talk to us about something."

Johnny follows Triton close. This is not the first time that their father has wanted to talk to them in private. It's never a good thing when that happens. Usually, their father calls them in when they've done something wrong. Triton has been called in a lot lately.

The walk is peaceful at first. People usually leave Triton and Johnny alone because of their nobility. They know better than to mess with noble. But today is not one of those days. A group of four Black Wolves walk past Johnny and Triton. Triton, in the kindest of gestures, nods at the leader. He doesn't return Triton's kind gesture. Triton stops dead in his tracks, greatly offended, and charges at the wolf.

Triton breaks through the pack and strikes the leader in the back of the head. The wolf falls to the ground in a heap. His friends, upon seeing their leader fall, attack Triton. Triton could handle two Black Wolves on his but three is too many. He puts up a good fight but they eventually overwhelm him. Two of them hold back Triton's arms while the other gets ready to strike him. Johnny jumps in and attacks the wolf is about to strike Triton. He knocks the wolf to the ground and knocks him out. Triton gathers his footing, grabs both of the wolves holding his arms back by the groin. He squeezes until both of the wolves are screaming like girls. The wolves let go of Triton and he strikes them down.

Triton walks over to the leader of the group who is just now regaining consciousness. Triton grabs him by the throat and lifts him off the ground. He draws back his arm back ready to strike and take the wolf's life. The look in the wolf's eyes is pure fear. He looks at Johnny for help.

"Please, don't let him kill me."

"He's not going to kill you." Johnny tries to reassure the wolf.

The next moment seems to pass by in slow motion. Triton strikes the wolf in the head driving his nose into his brain, killing him instantly. Johnny watches the wolf's body drop to the ground like a log. His mind knows what just happened, but his heart refuses to believe it.

A month passes by and Johnny and Triton are standing around in chains in front of a crowd of Cerinians. Everyone they know is standing before them. Their father Joseph is standing before them about to tell them what their sentence is. Johnny looks out into the crowd and sees his mother crying. His little sister, Natasha, holds their mother, comforting her. Looking at them hurts Johnny's heart. He looks deeper into sees Triton's ex – wife Elizabeth (a Blue Cougar) and their two – year old hybrid son Shawn. Johnny can tell that Elizabeth still loves Triton deep down. But the man standing beside Johnny now is not the Triton she fell in love with. That's why she left him. But what hurts Johnny the most is that Jasmine is not in the crowd. She was the one person that Johnny wanted to see before he was sentenced. Now she's not here. It takes everything Johnny has not to cry.

Joseph walks over to Johnny and Triton. He has always been good at hiding his emotions from his children. But now that Johnny and Triton has completely mastered the Wolf Sense they can read their father like a book. Deep down, Johnny can sense that Joseph is crying. Johnny acts like he doesn't notice.

"Triton, Jonathan, you two have done great wrong and brought shame to our people." Joseph turns to Triton. "Triton, son, for committing cold blooded murder you are permanently banished. If you return here you will killed on the spot." Joseph turns to Jonathan. "Jonathan, son, you could have prevented a man's death, but you choose not to. You assumed that your brother wouldn't kill a man and someone died because of your assumption. For that, you will be partially banished. You can return home only when we believe that you have regained your honor. I have people who will be watching you. If you return before that then you will be killed on the spot. Do either of you have anything to say?"

"Yes father" Jonathan speaks then addresses the crowd. "I wish to say to the family of the deceased that I am sorry for your loss. You lost a good man because of my mistake. I hope in time that you will forgive me."

Four guards escort Johnny and Triton to the ship that will take them to the nearest friendly planet. From there, Johnny and Triton will be on their own.

"WAIT STOP!"

Johnny turns around and sees Jasmine running towards him. She jumps into his arms and kisses him repeatedly and roughly.

"Jasmine, your father is here. He'll see you."

"I don't care. I love you Johnny. I want to go with you. I can't live without your Johnny."

"No Jasmine I can't allow that to happen. You belong here with your people. I don't know what will happen to me. I'd be risking your safety if I took you with me. As much as I love and want to be with you, I think that it'd be better if you stay here for now."

Jasmine rests her head in Johnny's shoulder and cries.

"Alright, I'll stay here. But promise me that you'll do everything you can to get here as soon as possible."

"I promise, as long you promise to wait for me."

Jasmine lightly touches Johnny's cheek and looks deep into his eyes.

"Jonathan, I don't care if it takes a hundred years. I will wait for you."

Fara and Madison snap out of the memory. Fara looks over at Johnny and sees a small tear rolling his cheek. No one else notices.

"Now you know why I was banished."

"Johnny, I'm so sorry. If I'd known how painful the memory was I wouldn't have . . ."

"It's ok Fara, I wanted you to know. Outside of you three the only people who know why I was banished are Bobcat and Timothy."

"But how is this help me with Fox?"

"You remember that saying I told Jasmine."

"Not really"

"Listen to the wind, it talks. Listen to the silence, it speaks. Listen to your heart, it knows."

"Oh yeah, what you're say is that I should follow my heart with Fox. I should tell him right?"

"If that's what your heart is telling you to do then yes."

"But what if he says no?"

"Fara, I know this is going to sound cliché but if he says yes then it's not meant to be."

"Thanks Johnny, that helps a lot." Fara replies angrily sarcastic.

"I had a feeling you were going to say that. But trust me Fara, I know it hurts to hear this but there's a possibility that Fox could turn you down. If that happens you need to . . ."

Johnny suddenly stops like he's heard something. Troy knows this means something's up.

"What is it Johnny?"

"I heard something in the distance."

Johnny's ear's narrow the position of the noise to a small patch of trees in the distance. His greens eyes suddenly start glowing.

"I see eight hostiles in those trees." Johnny turns to Fara, Madison, and Troy. "There's probably more them around. I'll take care of those in trees. I want you three to warn everyone else."

"You can't order me around." Madison snaps back.

"I'm an officer, I can tell you to do just about anything."

Troy grabs Madison to keep her from attacking Johnny and making the biggest mistake of her life. He pulls her away towards the base. Fara stays back for a moment.

"Be safe Johnny."

"You have my word."

Johnny takes off running towards the trees. Fara watches Johnny disappear into the trees. She suddenly feels something deep down attracting her to Johnny. Fara tries to push it aside but can't. Even her love for Fox cannot make the feelings go away.

Who's attacking the base? What do they want? Can anything be done to stop them?

Special thanks to Troygroomes for the advice that Johnny gives to Fara for dealing with Fox.

If you want to see your OCs in a future Star Ghost story send me a private message of your OC's bio. - John Storm


	8. Chapter 7 Unhappy Family Reunion

Papetoon is under attack for the second time in less than 24 hours. Man that rebels are determined. They must really want their friends back. The only people who know about the attack are Johnny, Fara, Troy, and Madison. Johnny has taken off to distract the rebels while Fara, Madison, and Troy warn everyone. Unbeknownst to them, a powerful enemy lurks in the shadows looking to cause some trouble. Who is he and what is he capable of?

Chapter 7: Unhappy Family Reunion

Troy and Fara follow Madison close. She is the only one who knows where the alarm is. All of them have their weapons drawn just in case. But Troy is the only one who is armed with a rifle. His Odachi and Katana are strapped onto his back. All Fara and Madison have are pistols. After the recent rebel attack, Fara doesn't go anywhere without a pistol.

Madison, Troy, and Fara make it into the main facility in under a minute. Fara and Madison stop to rest. It's a long run uphill. They ran so fast that they wasted all their energy trying to get here. Troy is the only one who is not out of breath.

"Madison, where's the alarm?" Troy asks.

Madison points to a door on the other side of the building.

"Just through that door, can't miss it."

"Alright, Fara go ring it."

"Why me?"

"Because someone has to stand here and guard the door. I'm the only one with a rifle."

"Good point, I'll be right back."

Fara takes off leaving Troy and Madison alone for the first time. Madison looks at Troy hoping to find him eyeing her but Troy is standing guard by the door ready to fire.

"Hey Troy, can I ask you a question?"  
"Sure, just make it quick."

"_Dang it, that ruins my question."_ Madison quickly tries to think of a question. She goes with the first thing that comes into her mind. "How did Johnny know those guys sneaking up are bad?"

"Johnny's people possess a unique ability called the Wolf Sense. One of the things it allows them to do is tell if a person is a friend or an enemy."

"Really, I bet that must come in handy."

"It does, that's why Bobcat takes Johnny everywhere with him."

"Makes sense to me. Are his people more powerful than ours?"

"No, our abilities are stronger than theirs. But they do have one advantage over us."

"What is it?"

"I don't know how but the Black Wolves have figured out a technique to block our telepathy."

"Seriously, they can do that?"

"Yeah, they can predict our moves but we can't predict theirs. It's kind of unfair but . . ."

Before either can say another word, both Troy and Madison detect a strange and powerful presence lurking in the shadows. To Madison, the presence feels similar to Johnny's. But there's something evil in this presence. Madison stands up and looks around the building. Besides herself and Troy, the only thing that Madison sees in the building are shadows.

Troy dives at Madison just as a sword appears out of the shadows and swings towards Madison's head. The sword misses Madison's head by inches. Troy knocks Madison out of the way, draws his sword, and faces their attacker.

Madison quickly recovers ready to face her attacker but is stunned when she lays her eyes on her him. Standing before her is a Black Wolf. He looks just like Johnny. The Wolf is even wearing similar clothes and carrying the exact same sword. He's wearing a skull – face mask so Madison can't see his face. Madison thinks that he is Johnny at first but realizes that it's not when she looks at his hair. Unlike Johnny, all of this Wolf's hair has never been cut. Madison then realizes that this Wolf is at least two inches taller than Johnny. The Wolf just stands there waiting for either Madison or Troy to attack him.

Madison looks at Troy for advice. She notices a scared look in Troy's eyes, something that she thought she'd never see. The look alone gives Madison goose bumps. What horrifies Madison is that the Wolf is just standing there waiting. He could be attacking them right now but hasn't moved a muscle. It's like he wants them to attack him. Madison tries using the Cerinian mind reading abilities that Troy taught her this afternoon on the Wolf to figure out his plan but gets nothing in return. It takes a minute for Madison to remember that the Black Wolves can block her abilities.

Troy, sensing that the Wolf wants to fight honorably, drops his rifle on the floor and draws his swords. Troy unlocks the hilts of his Odachi and Katana. He tosses the Katana to Madison and keeps the Odachi for himself. The Katana feels good in her hands. It feels natural, like an extension of her arm.

"You got any sword training under your belt?" Troy asks.

"I've taken a few lessons."

"Good, you're going to need it. Just stay behind me and attack only when you see an opening. The only way we're going to survive this is if we work together."

Madison hides her smile from Troy's eyes.

"_Finally, a chance to work together. I won't let you down."_

Meanwhile outside the base.

Eight well – armed rebel soldiers take cover in a small patch of trees close the base. Each of them is armed with an XLR blaster, a rocket launcher, a pistol, and is enough explosives to level a building. The rebels have enough firepower to cause serious damage but there is a problem: none of them wants to be there.

"Hey Wyatt, why are we here?"

"Because Chief told us to be here. I've seen him mad. Trust me, if you disobey him he will kill you. I've seen him do it."

"We've all heard the rumors dude. But this doesn't make sense to me. It's the eight of us against an entire company just to rescue our comrades. Sounds like a waste of talent to me."

"We're not wasting our talent Jessy. Our job is to distract these wannabe Cornerians for a couple of minutes. We'll be gone before they even know what happens."

"You'd better be right Wyatt. We're dead if you're wrong."

"We'll be fine. Chief has taken every precaution."

"If that's true then why isn't Chief here?"

"He's taking care of their alarm as we speak. He'll be here in just a few minutes."

"So what are we to do while we wait?"

An eerie voice echoes from the shadows: "You can die."

Johnny emerges from the shadows with his sword drawn. He moves so fast that all the rebels see is a black blur. The last thing the rebels see is Johnny's sword cutting deep into their flesh and blood flying through the air.

"_Well that was too easy."_

Johnny hears a moan coming from one of the rebels. He left one of the rebels alive for questioning. Johnny walks over to the rebels and kneels down next to the rebel. He grabs the rebel by the collar and lifts him up to his eye level. The rebel kicks around trying to find the ground but finds nothing. The sadistic look in Johnny's eyes scare him almost to death.

"I'm only going to tell you this once. Either you tell me what I want to know or I'll snap your neck like a twig. Do you understand?"

The rebel nods that he understands.

"Good, why are you here?"

"To rescue our comrades that you captured earlier today."

"How many men do you have?"

"Twenty, the eight of us were a distraction. The other team is rescuing our comrades as we speak."

"And the chief?"

"He's disabling the alarm."

"Who is he?"

"He's a Black Wolf like you. I don't know his name. But I can tell you that he's the deadliest fighter I've ever seen. You don't stand a chance against him.

"Thank you"

Johnny throws the rebel on the ground. As a security measure he breaks the rebel's knee.

"Don't go anywhere." Johnny says with a smile.

Johnny takes off running to find Troy, Madison, and Fara. If what the rebel told him is true then he knows that he has to rescue them. They don't stand a chance against a Black Wolf.

Meanwhile back at the base.

Troy barely blocks another attack. It takes everything he has to withstand the Wolf's attacks. The strength that the Wolf possesses is nothing short of amazing. The Wolf has more strength in one arm than Troy has in his entire body. Each blow Troy blocks feels like getting hit by a sledgehammer.

The Wolf draws back for another strike leaving himself open. Troy takes the opportunity and strikes but the Wolf easily deflects his attack like he was expecting it opening Troy up for attack. The Wolf brings his sword down on Troy with all his strength. Troy gathers all his strength and brings his sword up just in time to block the Wolf's attack. The blow is so powerful that Troy's a crack appears on the blade. Troy tries to recover but receives a powerful kick to the stomach. The blow sends Troy trying backwards and through the wall. Troy lands hard in the sand outside.

The Wolf sees Madison charge at him in his peripheral. Madison swings at the Wolf's head expecting to decapitate him but finds only air. Next things she knows the Wolf is standing behind her. He grabs her shirt and throws her like a ragdoll through the hole Troy's body made where she lands hard next to Troy.

"How you doing Madison?" Troy asks jokingly.

"Could be worse. This wolf's tougher than I thought."

Troy and Madison have been holding their own against the Wolf. They know that they cannot hope to take the Wolf head on. The Wolf is too strong for that. He's just as quick as they are and twice as strong. Troy and Madison have been taking on the Wolf strategically. Troy engages him from the front while Madison works her away around the Wolf looking for an opening. But the Wolf keeps Madison in his sight. He constantly moves around making it difficult for Madison to get spot an opening. However, Troy was able to distract the Wolf long enough for Madison to land a cut on the Wolf's arm, though it was only a minor cut.

"How much longer do we have to distract this guy?" Madison shouts.

"Not much longer I hope. As soon as the alarm goes off we should get some help, hopefully."

"I hope you're right Troy."

The wolf jumps through the hole and rushes at Troy and Madison. Suddenly, the alarms around the base go off. Four Cornerian soldiers and Fara appear from behind a corner and fire at the Wolf. The Wolf ducks and takes cover behind a wall. The Cornerian soldiers chase after him. Fara runs to Troy and Madison.

"Are ya'll ok?"

"I'm fine Fara." Madison answers then looks at Troy. It's obvious that he's in pain. "What's wrong?"

"I think I broke a rib. That Wolf is tougher than I thought. The only Black Wolves I've seen that are anywhere near this guy's skill are nobles."

"What are you thinking?"

"I don't know. Whatever it is, he's one of the most dangerous wolf I've ever . . ."

Troy's ears move around like they just heard something suspicious.

"What do you hear Troy?"

"Nothing, that's the problem. We should be hearing soldiers approaching."

Fara jumps up and looks around. She sees a Cornerian soldier approaching them.

"Are ya'll ok?"  
"We're alright"

The Wolf appears out of nowhere and cuts the soldier in half before he can say another word. Fara is so stunned that she cannot even raise her pistol to fire. The wolf senses Fara's fear. He finds it amusing. The wolf simple turns and starts to walk away. Fara snaps out of her trance in time to see the wolf walking away. She cannot let this guy get away. Fara raises her pistol, aims, and shoots the wolf in the back. To Fara's surprise, the blast hardly does anything besides knock the wolf off balance. The wolf glares back at Fara with a look that would stop a charging bull in its tracks.

"_How is this guy still alive? This pistol has enough firepower to kill an elephant."_

Fara realizes that the wolf is wearing a Kevlar vest. She aims at the wolf's head this time. But before she can fire another shot, the Wolf charges at her and cuts the pistol from her hands. Fara watches the barrel fall to the ground.

"_Looks like I'll never tell Fox how I'll feel._"

The Wolf raises his sword above his head to kill Fara. Fara braces herself for death. The Wolf starts to swing but suddenly stops. Something is preventing him from killing Fara. The Wolf turns around and sees Johnny standing behind him. He caught the wolf's sword with his own. Before the wolf can react Johnny's shin collides with his forehead sending him flying into a nearby wall. Fara, overwhelmed with emotions, wraps her arms around Johnny and hugs him. Johnny is caught off guard.

"Fara, I'd be ok with just a thank you."

Fara jumps back when she realizes that she's hugging Johnny.

"Sorry"

"It's ok"

Out of the corner of his eye, Johnny sees the Wolf, still conscious, get back up. The fact that the wolf is still conscious amazes him. That blow would have knocked out a buffalo. The Wolf stands up barely scathed and laughing.

"You've gotten stronger Jonathan."

"How do you know my name?"

The wolf takes his mask revealing his face. Johnny gasps when he sees his face.

"Triton"

Johnny stands there petrified.

"Why are you so surprised Jonathan? You know that I'm all about freedom. The rebels are fighting for freedom."

"No brother, the rebels fight for anarchy not freedom."

"Anarchy is freedom"

"No, anarchy is not freedom. Nothing good comes from anarchy."

"That's your perspective brother, not mine."

Johnny is about to attack Triton when he hears Cornerian soldiers and Wild Cats approaching. Within a moment, Triton is surrounded by over fifty soldiers. To everyone's surprise, Triton doesn't appear to be scared at all. He actually starts laughing. The soldiers look at each confused. Triton steps forward with his sword raised ready to strike down the soldiers closest to him.

"HOLD YOUR FIRE!" Johnny shouts.

Johnny steps between the soldiers towards Triton with his sword drawn. He points his sword at Triton challenging him. "This is between me and you."

"What's he doing?" Fara asks.

"He taking Triton on honorably. Johnny knows that Triton would rather die than surrender. So Johnny is going to challenge Triton to a duel. Johnny's hoping that he can at least wound Triton enough to make him surrender." Troy answers.

"It seems to me that Johnny is doing this more for himself." Madison adds. "From what my abilities are telling me Johnny's spent his entire life living in Triton's shadow. This is a personal thing for him."

Johnny and Triton circle each other waiting for the other to attack. Triton is cocky almost to the point of laughing. Johnny, on the other hand, is not showing any emotions. He know that Triton preys on emotions. If Triton can get him angry then Johnny's mentality will be compromised meaning his chances of bringing Triton down go from slim to absolutely none at all.

"Are you ready for this baby brother?" Triton taunts swinging his sword around like a rooster strutting his stuff. Johnny just smiles back at Triton. It works at irritating Triton. Triton switches to a different tactic. "You know brother it's a shame that you never got to sleep that beautiful . . . what's her name? . . . Jasmine right? She was very beautiful."

Johnny charges at Triton full of rage. No one insults Jasmine and gets away with it. Their sword collide at full strength causing sparks to fly. Johnny attacks Triton with all of the rage and strength he possesses. Johnny brings blow after blow on Triton trying to pound him into the dirt. But Triton easily deflects every blow that Johnny throws at him. While Johnny's anger makes him stronger it also makes him slower and more predictable. Triton is able to avoid Johnny's attacks like a fly avoiding a hand. But then Johnny sees an opening in Triton's defenses and manages to connect his elbow to Triton's chin, followed by a kick to stomach and finishes with a punch to the jaw.

Triton lands on the ground with a thud. He let his guard down for half a second and it was long enough for Johnny to land three blows and stun him. Triton shakes his head trying to gather his thoughts. But before he can recover he sees Johnny coming down on him. Triton rolls out of the way as Johnny's sword impacts the ground.

Triton is on his feet before Johnny can strike again and delivers a powerful kick to the Johnny's stomach. The blow sends Johnny flying backwards. Johnny rolls, recovers, and attacks Triton again. But Triton expects Johnny's attack and simple turns to the aside as Johnny rushes past him then clotheslines him. Johnny lands on his back with a thud. Before he can recover, Triton kicks Johnny in the stomach knocking the breath out of him. Johnny rolls over on his stomach trying to catch his breath. Triton stands back waiting to see if Johnny gets up.

Johnny looks up and sees Fara in the crowd. He sees the fear in her eyes. Seeing Fara's fear calms him down. He realizes that Triton knew just what nerve to touch. All he had to do was tug on it and Johnny was a puppet. Johnny mentally slaps himself when he realizes that he fell for one of the oldest tricks in the book.

"_Thank you Fara"_

Johnny slowly stands up smiles. Triton looks like a Johnny like he's a mad man.

"Nice try Triton. I see what you're doing. It's not going to work."

"Ah, you're learning baby brother. You've grown a lot in such a short period of time. I guess I can't call you baby brother anymore."

"No, you can't. Now, how about we settle this like men. No holding back."

"Sounds good to me."

Triton unleashes a pounding on Johnny. Triton brings blow after blow on Johnny. It takes all of Johnny's strength, speed, and skill to defend himself against Triton's blows. Triton brings blow after blow on Johnny. Whenever he gets the chance, Triton attacks Johnny using his sword's special ability. With it Johnny has two choices: dodge or activate his sword's special ability. The results could be drastic if he fails to do one.

Fara and Madison watch the fight from the sidelines with amazement. The skills that these two Black Wolves possess is nothing short of amazing. The speed and strength they possess is beyond abnormal. Half the time, Fara and Madison cannot distinguish an individual move from another. Johnny and Troy move so fast that all Fara and Madison see are black blurs. Their blows are so powerful that Fara and Madison can almost feel the impact from the blows.

Johnny suddenly sees an opening in Triton's defenses. He notices that Triton tends to overextend himself on some of his swings. Johnny waits for Triton to make one of his swings and ducks. He barely avoids the blow. Triton's sword comes so close to Johnny's head that it cuts off a few hairs. Johnny sees his opportunity and takes it. He aims at slice at Triton's right leg. Johnny's sword cuts deep into Triton's leg, all the way to the bone.

Triton jumps back in pain. It takes all of Tritons' strength to keep standing. The wound is severe. The cut itself is large enough to fit a small rock inside. Blood pours out the wound like a spigot. To Triton, it feels like his leg is dangling by a thread. He knows that Johnny's sword has cut the bone. Triton keeps his right leg off the ground to stop the pain.

Fara looks at Troy and sees a look of surprise on his face.

"Why are you so surprised Troy?"

"I didn't think that Johnny would even land a blow, let alone one this good. No doubt Triton's not going to let that go unanswered."

Triton gathers his strength and takes a defensive stance ready for the next round. But what shocks everyone is that Triton starts laughing.

"Nice one brother. Now it's my turn."

Triton rushes at Johnny full speed and activates the sword's special ability. He brings his sword down full strength on Johnny. Johnny jumps back barely avoiding the blade. Triton's sword smashes into the ground leaving an impact crater. Before Johnny can respond Triton attacks again. This time, Johnny decides to block the blow head on. Triton's sword impacts Johnny with such force that Johnny is blown backwards. Johnny flies back several feet but manages to regain his foot. But not in time to prepare himself for Triton's attack. Triton's sword comes down on Johnny full strength. Triton's sword cuts diagonally across Johnny's chest from his shoulder to his stomach. The cut is not deep, about half an inch at best. But the energy from Triton's swords transfers to Johnny's chest.

The blow takes Johnny to one knee. The energy he received is deadlier than the blow itself. It burns his flesh like acid cutting deeper every second. To Johnny it feels like someone just poured a bottle of acid on his chest. Fara, standing ten yards away, can see smoke coming from the wound as it burns his fur and flesh.

Triton stands back waiting to see how Johnny handles his wound. He still has enough honor to wait for Johnny to gather what strength he has left before attack. But what Triton sees surprises even him: Johnny stands up ready for another round. Very few people have ever come back from an energy attack from a Black Wolf Sword, especially when it causes an injury as severe as Johnny's.

Johnny and Triton are on the edge of their reserve. Both are severely injured. Triton is having trouble walking and Johnny is on the verge of collapsing from blood loss. Both want this fight to end but neither of them has the humility to back down.

The answer to the problems comes from a concealed ship above their heads. A rebel ship suddenly appears hovering above them. Smoke bombs are dropped from the ship into the crowd before stunning the soldiers below. Johnny stumbles around in the smoke looking for Triton. When the smoke clears Triton is gone.

"Sorry to end our duel so quickly brother but I must go. Say hello to mom and dad for me."

Johnny looks up and sees Triton standing on the balcony of the rebel ship waving down at him. Before Johnny can respond the rebel ship disappears.

"Damn it"

As soon as the smoke clears Fara, Madison, and Troy run to Johnny. Fara catches Johnny as he falls to his knees. She holds him up long enough for Troy and Madison to each grab an arm.

"You ok Johnny?" Troy asks.

"Yeah, I just got a flesh wound." Johnny replies sarcastically.

Fara watches Johnny's blood flow out of the wound and onto the ground. She knows that Johnny needs a hospital now. Troy, Madison, and Fara carry Johnny as best they can to the hospital but Johnny is a big dude, bigger than Troy and Madison combined. Fara stays up against Johnny's chest to keep him up. Johnny stays on his feet as best he can but the blood loss is getting to him. He's on the verge of passing out.

Johnny makes it to hospital door then collapses. Fara uses all her strength to hold Johnny up and keep him from landing hard on the floor. Troy and Madison cautiously lower Johnny onto the hospital floor.

"Madison, go get a doctor. Fara and I will stay with Johnny."

"You got it."

Madison runs off leaving Fara and Madison with Troy. Troy plugs up Johnny's wound as best he can with his shirt. Fara grabs Johnny's and squeezes it tight. She looks deep into Johnny's eyes. Fara doesn't see fear but regret.

"You're going to be alright Johnny. Just hold on. The doctor will be here soon."

Johnny manages a weak smile.

"Thank you for staying with me Fara."

"No Johnny, thank you for saving my life. I don't want you to die Johnny."

Johnny squeezes Fara's hand tight.

"Fara, I'm prepared to die. My father trained me and Triton not to fear death. But that's not what scares me."

"What is it then?"

"The fact that if I die now I'll never see Jasmine again."

Before Fara can respond, Johnny losses conscious. The last thing he sees is Fara screaming for a doctor and Madison running with one right behind her.

Johnny wakes up groggy at first. It takes a minute for his eyes to adjust to the bright hospital lighting. The pain in his chest comes next. It is excruciating, like someone is slowly running a knife through his flesh. It's times like this when Johnny wishes that he could take painkillers without putting those around him in danger.

"Johnny you're finally awake."

Johnny look and sees Fox, Fara, and Bobcat sitting next to him. Fara jumps up and runs to Johnny's side. She wraps her arms around his neck and squeezes so tight that Johnny can hardly breathe.

"Fara . . . to tight . . . can't breathe . . ."

"Oh sorry," Fara replies as she lets go. "I'm happy to see that you're alright. I don't think that I'd be able to live with myself if you died because of me."

"It's ok Fara," Johnny reaches and lightly grasps Fara's small hand in his large one. "It'll take more than a flesh wound to kill me."

Fara can't help but giggle. She knows that he's right. It would take one heck of a hard hit to take Johnny down.

"Just promise me that you'll be a little more careful and not let your anger get the better of you next time." Fara says jokingly.

"I promise, as long as you promise to return the favor."

"What are you talking about?"

"I've saved your life twice, no you gotta save my life."

"Oh" Fara giggle. "Alright, I promise to save your life one day."

"Good" Johnny lets go of Fara's hand and turns to Bobcat. "So what happened Colonel?"

"Well it's a little difficult to say but the rebels we captured have been freed. Triton and the rebels you fought in the trees were decoys. There was another squad out there. They attacked the guards at the prison. Four Cornerian soldiers were killed."

Johnny's heart drops when he hears the news. He knew that the rebels were going to free the prisoners. After the rebel told Johnny their plan, he radioed Bobcat on the situation. Bobcat set out a warning to Captain Shears but Shears thought it was a joke. Four good men are dead because of it.

"But I was more worried about you Johnny. The doctors didn't know how to respond to your injury. They've never seen anything like it. They had to take your sword just to figure out how to treat you."

"For some reason that doesn't surprise me."

"But seeing your own brother in the Zaldon Rebellion does."

Johnny takes a deep breath. "Who told you?"

"She did" Bobcat points to Fara. "Troy told me as well. I'm sorry to hear it about it Johnny. I wish that it was different for you."

"Thank you Colonel." Johnny tries to relax but his injuries are making it difficult. "So what are our orders Colonel? Are we going after the bastards?"

"No, they got a two day head start on us."

"I was unconscious for two days?" Johnny shouts.

"Yes, your injuries were pretty severe." Bobcat replies. "Our orders are to return to Zaldon. A war is about to begin."

Two days later.

Johnny has all but recovered for him injuries. He still has pain and has to take medication but he's doing alright. The time has come for the Wild Cats Squadron to head back home to Zaldon. All of the Wild Cats are on board except for Johnny, Bobcat, and Troy.

Bobcat stands in front of two of his oldest friends Peppy and General Pepper. The three of them share a long, heartfelt goodbye.

"Well Bobcat, you know that I've never been one for saying goodbye . . ."

"It's ok General, I know that you're not the emotional kind." Bobcat replies jokingly. "It's been great seeing you guys. Hopefully it's not five years till our next meeting."

"Hopefully, just promise us that you'll in touch." Peppy orders.

"Of course old friend. As long as you both promise me to look after Fox for me. He's a good kid."

"Don't worry about us old friend, we'll look after him."

Fox and Fara say goodbye to Johnny. While Fox and Johnny really don't know each other Fara feels a tighter connection to Johnny. She can't help but feel attracted to Johnny, even more than she's attracted to Fox. Fara's drawn to Johnny like a moth to the flame. She puts those feels aside as best she can.

Fox walks up to Johnny and in the most honorable gestures offers to shake Johnny's hand. Johnny accepts Fox's offer.

"Thank you for saving our lives Johnny. I'd be honored to fight alongside you any day."

"You're welcome Fox. I hope that we get the chance to fly together."

Fara's goodbye is far less traditional. She lightly grabs Johnny's shoulder to gain support, pulls Johnny down to her level, and plants a kiss on his check.

"Thank you for everything Johnny." Fara says with a glint of love in her eyes.

Johnny just looks into Fara's eyes with no idea how to respond.

"Uh, you're welcome."

Troy and Madison just stand there not knowing what to say to each other. Both of them have feelings for each other and the other knows it, thanks to their telepathy. Both are acting strange around each other.

"Hey Troy, just tell her how you feel. You don't I will." Johnny shouts.

Troy considers shooting Johnny for that. Before Troy can say anything Madison breaks the tensions. "I like you Madison."

"I like you to Troy. There's something that I've been meaning to ask you."

"What is it?"

"Can I come with you guys? I want to know more about my people and you are the one to ask."

"I don't know about that Madison. Haven't you signed a contract with the Cornerian military already?"

"No, I haven't signed it yet."

"Ok, it may be possible. But I'd had to talk to Bobcat first."

"She can come with us." Bobcat shouts.

Troy and Madison both look at Bobcat. He's standing nearly fifty yards away, how he heard them from this far away is a miracle.

"Johnny told me" Bobcat shouts.

"Dang it, I'm going kill that guy."

Madison can't help but laugh.

Ten minutes later, all of the Wild Cats are aboard their mother ship with one extra passenger. It took only a minute for General Pepper to arrange for Madison to go with the Wild Cats. Fox and Fara watch on the ground as the Wild Cats Squadron disappear into space. Fara grabs Fox's hands and squeezes it tight. She looks at Fox who doesn't look at her. He's too busy looking at the sky. That's the only thing that Fara's never liked about Fox. His eyes have always been set on the sky not on what's in front of him. It keeps him distracted from Fara. But Fara is willing to overlook. With the advice that Johnny gave her she is almost ready to make the next step. She just needs to find the time and place to tell him.

To be continued.

Sorry to end the story so abruptly but I thought that this was a good place to end it. I'll explain what happens afterwards in the epilogue, which is coming soon. Hopefully in the next couple of days.


	9. Epilogue

Epilogue

Johnny finishes telling the tale to the three children sitting in front of him. Alisha, Hunter, and Marcus stare blankly at Johnny. The story was not what they expected. They were expecting for the story to end with Johnny and Fara falling in love, not for Johnny to leave Fara on Papetoon like that. Daniel and Jennifer quietly smirk at each other. They've been told this story before.

"What the heck dad?" Alisha shouts. "Don't get me wrong dad, the story was good but you and mom didn't end up together."

"Alisha" Johnny playful scolds, "I told you before I started that this was not going to be a love story. You should've listened to me."

"Which she never does." Fara whispers to Krystal and Fox who are sitting next to her.

"What do you expect Fara? She has two parents who are both known for being stubborn and hardheaded." Krystal replies sarcastically.

"Very funny Krystal."

"No offense Fara, but she probably gets it from you." Fox whispers. "You were that way when you were her age."

Fara almost attempts to slap Fox upside the head but doesn't. April is asleep in her arms, Fara just got her to sleep a few minutes ago, and she doesn't want to wake her up. Fortunately, Krystal does Fara a favor and playfully slaps Fox upside the head.

"But dad," Alisha shouts. "I don't understand. You and mom had to fall in love at some point."

"We did, but you asked me to tell the story on how your mother and I met and I did. But we were not going to fall in love at that point in time anyway. You see kids, Fara was in love with Fox at the time and I was in love with Jasmine. But even if Fara had made a move I wouldn't have. Before I was banished I promised Jasmine that I'd save myself for her. I keep my promises. But I'd say that the adventure wasn't wasted. I was able to give me advice with Fox."

"And we both know how that ended." Fara cockily adds.

Krystal smacks Fox upside the head for Fara again, this time a little harder.

"That's two Fox, next one will be in your nuts."

Fox shuts his mouth and doesn't say another word.

"What's he talking about Fara?" Marcus asks.

"It was about a year later when I told your father that I loved him. It didn't work out very well. We both loved each other, still do, just in separate ways. Fox only loved me as a brother would love his sister. That wasn't enough for me. So I left the team and went back to work at my father's company for a while. So I guess that everything worked out perfectly."

"What do you mean mom?" Hunter asks.

"Simple Hunter, if Fox and I had stayed together than none of ya'll, except Daniel, would exist."

"Excellent point mom." Daniel shouts while not looking up from his book.

Alisha, Hunter, and Marcus look at each other not knowing how to respond. They all know that what Fara said is true.

"So when did you and dad fall in love?" Alisha asks.

"About six years later on a Wild Cats mission to Zathora . . ."

"Zathora, excuse if I'm making a mistake mom but isn't Zathora the original home world of daddy's people?" Hunter interrupts.

Fara gives Hunter a look that gives him goose bumps.

"You're right Hunter. You're dad's people are originally from Zathora. But they left Zathora and went to Cerinia a 150 years ago. The history lesson is not now over, back to the story. "Fara explains. "Your father and I were shot down together on that mission. I had to trust your father to survive. Johnny could've survived on his own."

"How could he have? Zathora is an ice world." Alisha asks.

"Because his people were originally from Zathora they had adapted to the cold. My species on the other hand are originally from Titania the desert planet, so you see the problem. I survived by cuddling up against your father. His fur kept me nice and warm. I spent the next three days snuggled up his bare chest. We feel in love there. The rest is history. Now I want you kids to go outside and play. You need to work off that big breakfast. That's an order."

"Yes mom" Alisha, Hunter, and Marcus reply in unison.

Alisha, Hunter, and Marcus jump up and run outside without hesitating. Fara gives Fox and Krystal a glance that says "now that's how you get kids to do what you want."

"Daniel, Jennifer that means you to." Johnny orders.

"Yes dad" Daniel and Jennifer answer in unison.

Daniel and Jennifer immediately jump up and run outside. But Fara grabs before Jennifer by the arm before she gets outside.

"Jen, there's something that I want to talk to you first."

"Sure mom, what it is?"

"Not here Jen, someplace private."

Fara looks at Johnny, Fox, and Krystal. They get the message. Fox and Krystal get up and walk outside to watch the kids. Johnny carefully takes April from Jennifer. He cradles her in his arms as she sleeps. But he stands there expecting to be part of the conversation.

"Uh Johnny, this is a mother/daughter conversation."

"Oh sorry, I'll be outside if you need me."

Johnny joins the others outside leaving Fox and Jennifer alone. Fara and Jennifer take a seat on the couch. This is a conversation, not the birds and the bee's conversation, Fara has not been looking forward to having with her 14 year old daughter. Fara takes a deep breath before beginning.

"Jennifer, I want to talk to you about that boy you've been dating."

"You mean Scott?" Jennifer replies. "Mom you don't gotta worry about Scott and me anymore. We're not together anymore."

"What happened?"

"I found out that he was just wanted to get in my pants. Since I had refused all of his advances he decided to try to drug me. Good thing dad taught me how to use the Wolf Sense otherwise I wouldn't have known."

"_Thank God for the Wolf Sense." _Fara thinks. What surprises Fara is that Jennifer is calm. She's not showing any anger or sadness at all. All Fara can detect is confusion.

"How you handling it Jennifer?"

"Ok I guess. I stopped having feelings for him a long time ago. I kept hanging out with him because I was just trying to make you and dad mad."

Fara can't help but smile. She remembers her and Johnny shouting at Jennifer that she cannot see Scott anymore. Fara also remembers her father and mother doing the same thing when she started dating Fox.

"But now mom I'm confused. I don't know if I can love again."

Fara can't help but laugh.

"Trust me Jen I went through the same thing. After Fox and I broke up I thought that I would never love again to. I actually held a grudge against your father for two years before I finally let it go."

"You had a grudge against dad?" Jennifer asks shocked.

"Yes, I followed his advice and told Fox how I felt. When he dumped me I blamed Johnny for the mistake. I thought that he had given me bad advice. But I eventually realized that Johnny was right. So I decided to keep looking for my soul mate. I made some bad choices . . ."

"Let me guess mom, Gideon was one of those bad choices." Jennifer jokes.

"Very funny Jenny. That was a long time ago and it was a mistake. I realized that when I overheard him talking about me to Panther. When those two talk about girls in private it's really perverted. So the next time I saw him I dislocated his shoulder."

"Nice one mom."

"Yeah it was. Fortunately your father was there for me. So trust me Jen, just keep looking and you'll find the one that God has planned for you."

"Thanks mom"

Jennifer gets up to head outside to join the others but Fara stops her.

"What is it mom?"

"One more thing before we join the others. I want you to know the advice that your father gave me. It has helped me so much throughout my life."  
"Listen to the wind, it talks."  
"Listen to the silence, it speaks."  
"Listen to your heart, it knows."

I would like to say thank you for reading my story. Ya'll are the reason I keep on writing. And a special thanks to everyone who has viewed any or both of my two stories. You great guys and gals have given both of stories over 500 views, as of May 16, 2014. This wouldn't be possible without you. I hope that you continue to read and enjoy my stories.  
Special thanks to Troy Groomes for letting me use his OCs (Troy and Madison Groomes). Your OCs played a big role in this story. They've allowed me to add a great element to my story. Hopefully I can pay you back in the near future.  
Stay tuned for my next story "Legend of Star Ghost II: Avengers," coming soon. I promise you twists and turns, violence, and romance, everything that a great story needs. Trust me, you will be surprised at what I have in store what "Avengers."  
BTW, I just started an Internship at Mt. Nebo State Park, Arkansas. I'll be working all day and I'll only be able to work on my future stories in the evenings as a result. So I will not be able to produce my stories as quickly as I have in the past. But I will still be writing when I can. Hopefully I'll have the first couple of chapters of "Avengers" complete in posted soon.


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